FIFTH    EDITION 


ifornia 

)nal 

ity 


(Jeor^e 


25    CE^TS 


James 


I 


UCSB  LIBRARY 


SCENIC  MOUNT  LOWE 


BY   GEORGE   WHARTON   JAMES. 


IN   AND   AROUND  THE   GRAND   CANYON    OF   THE 
COLORADO   RIVER   IN   ARIZONA 

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The  Grandest  Railway  in  the   World 

SCENIC  MOUNT  LOWE 

.  .  AND    ITS  .  . 

WONDERFUL  RAILWAY 

How  the  Sierra  Madre  Mountains  have  been  surmounted  by 
Electric  Cars,  and  the  most  Beautiful  and  Grand  Views  of 
Mountain,  Valley  and  Ocean  Scenery  made  accessible  to  all 

PROFUSELY   ILLUSTRATED 


FIFTH   EDITION 


GEORGE  WHARTON  JAMES 

AUTHOR  OF 

Travelers'  Hand-book  to  Southern  California 

In  and  Out  of  the  Old  Missions  of  California 
In  and  Around  the  Grand  Canyon 

The  Indians  of  the  Painted  Desert  Region 
Indian  Basketry  ;  How  to  make  Indian  and  other  Baskets 
Etc.,  Etc. 


1905 

PACIFIC   ELECTRIC  RAILWAY 
LOS  ANGELES,   CALIFORNIA 


MOUNTAINS. 


Centuries  old  are  the  mountains; 
Their  foreheads  wrinkled  and  rifted, 
Helios  crowns  by  day, 
Pallid,  serene  by  night ; 
From  their  bosoms  uptossed 
The  snows  are  driven  and  drifted 
Like  Lithonus'  beard 
Streaming,  disheveled  and  white. 

Thunder  and  tempest  of  wind 
Their  trumpets  blow  in  the  vastness ; 
Phantoms  of  mist  and  rain, 
Cloud  and  the  shadow  of  cloud, 
Pass  and  repass  by  the  gates 
Of  their  inaccessible  fastness ; 
Ever  unmoved  they  stand, 
Solemn,  eternal  and  proud. 

— LONGFELLOW 

in  "The  Mask  of  Pandora. 


CONTENTS. 


PACK 

Mountains,  by  Longfellow 4 

Man's  Love  for  the  Mountains 7 

Distinguished  Testimony 13 

Mount  Lowe  Railway 21 

Origin  of  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway 23 

Rubio  Canyon 27 

Great  Cable  Incline 29 

Echo  Mountain 31 

Echo  Mountain  House 33 

Lowe  Observatory 35 

Professor  Larkin 38 

The  Spectroscope 43 

Great  World's  Fair  Searchlight 47 

Operating  Machinery  of  Great  Cable  Incline 49 

Glen  Canyon 51 

Mount  Lowe  Eight 53 

Phantom  Sea 55 

Alpine  Division 57 

Nature  and  Art 59 

Magnificent  Views 61 

Circular  Bridge 65 

Alpine  Club  House,  Hanging  of  the  Crane 69 

Benefits  of  Mountain  Climbing 79 

Health  Gained  in  the  Mountains 83 

Mountain  Canyon  in  the  Winter 85 

Flora  of  Mount  Lowe 88 

Coast  Islands  from  Mount  Lowe 93 

Looking  from  Mount  Lowe  Over  the  Valley 94 

From  Alpine  Snow  to  Semi-Tropical  Sea 96 

From  the  Mountains  to  the  Sea 102 

Dawn  on  Mount  Lowe 104 

Tri-Crested  Summit  of  Mount  Lowe 106 

A  Forest  of  Pines 106 

The  Name 107 

How  to  See  Mount  Lowe no 

Summer  on  Mount  Lowe 112 

The  Summing  Up 114 

The  Beauties  of  Mount  Lowe 1 15 

Other    Picturesque    Trips    on    the    Pacific    Electric 

Railway 116 

Long  Beach 116 

Whittier 119 

San  Gabriel 1 20 

Monrovia  and  Baldwin's  Ranch 123 


THE  MOUNT  LOWE  DIVISION 
PACIFIC  ELECTRIC  RAILWAY 


Man's  Love  for    In  all  ages  of  the  world  man 

Mountains.        has  been  a  lover  of  mountains 

Rnskin    says,    "Mountains    are 

the  beginning  and  the  end  of  all  natural  scenery," 

hence  it  is  natural  that  man  should  love  them 

and  that  they  should  exercise  great  and  potent 

influence  upon  him. 

Carmel,  Ararat,  Hor,  Horeb,  Nebo,  Sinai, 
Olivet,  Hermon,  Calvary,  and  others  have  left  — 
through  the  literature  of  the  Bible  —  ineffaceable 
impressions  upon  the  highest  civilizations  of  the 
world.  All  oriental  literature  abounds  in  refer- 
ences to  mountains,  and  men  were  incited  to 
lives  of  majesty,  power,  and  purity  by  contem- 
plation of  them. 

Every  student  of  Japanese  literature  knows 
the  influence  Fuji  Yama  has  had  upon  the  desti- 
nies of  that  thoughtful  nation.  Life  in  the  moun- 
tains of  Afghanistan,  Beloochistan  and  Northern 
India  transformed  the  calm,  meditative,  pastoral 
Hindoos  into  active,  impulsive,  warlike  peoples. 


whose  movements  resemble  somewhat  the  fierce 
storms  that  play  upon  their  mountain  summits 
or  the  wild  winds  that  whirl  down  their  canyons. 

The  mountain  traditions  of  Europe  would  fill 
many  large  volumes,  and  the  folk-lore  of  the 
peasantry,  as  to  how  they  came  by  their  names, 
makes  most  fascinating  reading. 

Who  is  there  that  cannot  discern — what  Sir 
Walter  Scott  so  forcibly  presents — the  influence 
upon  the  national  character  of  the  Scots  and  the 
Swiss  exercised  by  the  rugged,  bold  and  snow- 
crowned  mountains  of  their  native  lands?  And 
the  proverbial  philosophy  of  both  these  peoples 
contains  many  coins  with  a  mountain  superscrip- 
tion. 

There  is  scarcely  a  poet  of  any  age  or  clime 
whose  soul  since  Homer  made  Olympus  the  home 
of  the  gods  and  Parnassus  the  seat  of  poesy,  has 
not  thankfully  accepted  the  uplift  of  mountain 
influence. 

Of  nearly  all  the  true,  pure,  heroic  souls  of  his- 
tory one  could  exclaim :  "He  made  him  friends 
of  mountains,"  and  we  read  with  thrilling  delight 
the  thoughts  inspired  by  mountains  in  Homer, 
Virgil,  Dante,  Grethe,  Schiller,  Moliere,  Fenelon, 
Bourdaloue,  Massillon,  Wordsworth,  Browning, 
Agassiz,  Winchell,  Clarence  King,  LeConte  and 
others. 

On  Sinai's  rugged  brow  it  was,  amid  heaven's 
awful  thunders,  God  showed  Himself  to  Moses, 
and.  through  him  to  mankind,  in  the  two  tables 
of  the  law.  On  Hor's  solitary  peak  He  conde- 
scended to  place  the  priestly  Aaron  in  his  tomb. 
On  Carmel,  His  servant,  the  dauntless  Elijah 
called  for  fire,  and  God  responded  with  the  de- 


vouring  element  from  heaven.  On  Ararat,  above 
the  drowned  world,  the  family  that  was  to  re- 
people  the  earth,  started  after  their  long  confine- 
ment in  their  floating  home.  On  Pisgah,  Moses 
stood  to  survey  the  promised  land.  On  Hermon 
Christ's  transfiguration  took  place.  On  Hattin 
He  proclaimed  the  beatitudes.  On  Calvary  He 
was  crucified,  and  on  Olivet  He  ascended. 

While  the  exigencies  of  business  and  com- 
merce have  made  it  necessary  for  the  ^rge  ma- 
jority of  people  to  dwell  on  level  plains  or  on  the 
shores  of  the  ocean,  the  greatest  peoples  and  the 
nations  which  have  longest  maintained  their  in- 
dependence have  been  those  which  inhabited 
mountainous  sections,  and  breathed  the  pure  air 
of  the  higher  altitudes.  The  purest  patriotism, 
the  highest  intellectual  attainments,  the  greatest 
love  of  family,  and  the  most  perfect  physical  de- 
velopment have  been  found  among  people  who 
were  inspired  by  the  grandeur  of  mountain  scen- 
ery. The  clinging  faith  and  stern  patriotism 
of  the  Hebrews  were  the  result  of  their  love  of 
the  mountains  of  Palestine ;  the  love  of  the  Greeks 
for  the  mountains  on  which  they  lived  gave  them 
the  intellectual  and  physical  vigor  which  enabled 
them  to  roll  back  the  Persian  hosts ;  the  sunny 
mountains  of  Italy  were  an  inspiration  to  the 
Romans  which  enabled  them  to  rule  the  world, 
and  the  heroism  of  the  Swiss  in  preserving  their 
national  autonomy  in  spite  of  all  Europe,  is  the 
most  illustrious  example  of  what  has  been  the 
history  of  all  mountaineers.  Mountains  are  the 
barriers  which  have  preserved  nations  from  de- 
struction, and  national  borders  generally  run 
parallel  with  mountain  ranges. 


13 

Distinguished  As  a  specimen  of  many  such 
Testimony.  testimonials  which  have  been 
publicly  given  in  regard  to  the  popularity  of  the 
Mount  Lowe  Railway,  I  append  herewith  portions 
of  an  admirable  letter  written  by  the  Hon.  W.  C. 
Patterson,  late  President  of  Los  Angeles  Cham- 
ber of  Commerce,  to  its  membership.  The  date 
is  September  27,  1895.  He  said:  "In  the  in- 
terest of  my  health  and  for  the  sake  of  most 
exquisite  recuperation  and  enjoyment,  I  have 
made  thus  far  thirty-nine  visits  to  Echo  Moun- 
tain, a:id  several  trips  to  the  summit  of  Mount 
Lowe.  I  have  also  passed  three  or  four  times 
over  the  matchless  five  miles'  extension  which 
is  called  the  'Alpine  Division,'  and  which  extends 
to  Mount  Lowe  Springs,  where  is  situated  Al- 
pine tavern,  an  altitude  of  5,000  feet  above  sea 
level. 

"The  Mount  Lowe  Railway,  which  enables 
one  to  penetrate  the  very  heart  of  the  Sierras 
with  entire  ease  and  comfort,  has  no  counterpart 
in  the  world,  either  to  the  originality  of  its  con- 
ception, the  solution  of  what  has  been  heretofore 
considered  impossible  engineering  problems,  or 
the  indescribable  picturesqueness  of  the  ever- 
changing  scenery  through  which  it  passes. 

"Any  one  who  makes  a  single  visit  becomes 
full  of  enthusiasm,  but  mine  has  grown  cumula- 
tive to  such  an  extent  that  language  seems  utterly 
inadequate.  As  I  have  witnessed  the  results  of 
Professor  Lowe's  great  genius,  enterprise,  and 
perseverence,  and  have  studied  his  personality, 
I  am  more  and  more  impressed  with  the  belief 
that  he  is  an  unique  character,  and  one  of  the 
great  men  of  this  progressive  age. 


Professor  I,owe  Addressing  his  Guests  on  the  Suspended  Boulder, 
Rubio  Canyon. 


15 

"It  is  a  matter  of  intense  surprise  to  me,  and 
almost  disgust,  that  so  few  of  our  own  people 
right  here  in  sight  of  our  beautiful  Sierra  Madre 
have  availed  themselves  of  the  opportunities 
which  he  has  opened  for  studying  their  more 
than  Alpine  beauties,  their  inexhaustible  and  in- 
tensely interesting  geological  and  botanical  re- 
sources, to  say  nothing  of  the  benefits  to  be  de- 
rived from  the  delicious  mountain  air,  freighted 
as  it  is  with  sweet  odors  and  buoyant  exhilara- 
tion. 

"These  mountains  are  not,  as  many  suppose, 
barren  and  bare.  Vegetation  extends  to  the  very 
summit,  more  than  6,000  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
and  the  flora  which  abounds  is  a  surprise,  both 
as  to  its  beauty  and  variety.  The  Alpine  exten- 
sion passes  and  repasses  through  delightful  and 
romantic  oak  groves,  and  through  forests  of  stal- 
wart pines.  Prof.  Lowe's  discovery  of  the  ex- 
istence of  a  quiet,  steady,  clear  atmosphere  sug- 
gested to  him  the  idea  of  establishing  in  these 
mountains  scientific  institutions,  especially  astro- 
nomical and  meteorological.  The  former  science 
has  already  been  installed  in  the  splendid  obser- 
vatory, which  is  presided  over  by  a  distinguished 
astronomer,  who  nightly  delivers  free  lectures 
illustrated  by  glimpses  of  the  heavenly  wonders 
through  the  great  telescope.  This  observatory 
has  already  achieved  a  world-wide  reputation, 
and  from  the  superior  conditions  of  the  atmos- 
phere in  which  it  is  placed,  numerous  discoveries 
have  already  been  made,  while  other  similar  in- 
stitutions have  made  no  progress.  It  is  said  that 
for  astronomical  purposes,  similar  atmospheric 
conditions  can  scarcely  anywhere  else  be  found. 


\\1 


Ready  for  the  Ascent  to  Bcho  Mountain. 


17 

These  mountain  peaks  ascend  almost  abruptly 
from  the  ocean  level,  and  in  the  great  valleys 
adjacent  the  fogs  and  mists  settle,  leaving  the  air 
clear  and  transparent.  The  cool  ocean  breezes 
modify  the  effect  of  the  sun's  rays  during  the 
day  and  reverse  the  currents  at  night,  whereby 
the  atmosphere  is,  as  it  were,  drawn  from  the 
desert  over  the  higher  ranges — nearly  twelve 
thousand  feet  in  height — having  such  cooling 
effects  that  the  waves  and  tremors  so  annoying  to 
astronomers  in  other  localities  are  entirely  absent. 

£  4c  £  4*  ifi  $  $ 

"There  exists  in  the  minds  of  Eastern  people 
an  impression  that  Southern  California  is  a  hot 
climate,  especially  in  summer.  This  impression 
arises  from  a  variety  of  causes.  Many  assume 
that  oranges  grow  only  in  hot  countries.  This  is 
not  necessarily  true.  They  will  not  mature  in 
cold  climates,  but  they  will  thrive  luxuriantly 
in  mild  climates.  It  is  said  that  in  Florida,  where 
the  summer  climate  is  hot  and  sultry,  oranges 
mature  in  six  months,  whereas  a  year  is  required 
in  California.  Another  cause  for  the  existence 
of  a  false  impression  as  to  our  summer  lies  in 
the  fact  that  heretofore  some  of  our  large  hotels, 
which  were  owned  by  Eastern  capitalists  who  con- 
trol Eastern  summer  resorts  closed  their  doors 
about  the  first  of  May,  which  is  really  just  the 
period  when  our  climate  becomes  the  most  delight- 
ful. Even  when  our  inland  districts  become 
somewhat  warm  there  is  always  delicious  relief 
to  be  found  at  the  seashore  or  in  the  mountains 
It  would  seem  strange  to  those  not  familiar  with 
the  fact  that  the  mildest  and  most  equable  portion 
of  our  climate  is  found  at  altitudes  of  three  to 


is 

t£  a 


- 
II 


19 

four  thousand  feet.  Those  who  visited  Echo 
Mountain  during  the  last  winter  may  remember 
that  delicate  flowers  flourished,  while  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  a  thousand  or  fifteen  hundred  feet  above 
snow  fell  to  a  depth  of  several  inches  and  re- 
mained in  the  bright  sunshine  but  dry  atmosphere 
several  days  without  melting.  This  has  made 
possible  an  interesting  experience,  by  which  with- 
in thirty  minutes  after  leaving  the  beautiful  flow- 
ers of  Echo  Mountain  and  the  valley  below  one 
can  enjoy  a  sleigh  ride  among  the  pines  in  the 
vicinity  of  'ye  Alpine  tavern.'  The  mountain 
atmosphere  during  the  full  six  months  is  so  mild 
and  dry  and  pure  that  one  could  sleep  in  the 
open  air  without  the  least  danger  of  taking  cold 
******  * 

"I  can  guarantee  that  every  person  who  goes 
over  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway  from  end  to  end 
will  want  to  repeat  the  experiment  and  will  urge 
his  friends  to  go.  The  enterprise  should  have  the 
hearty  co-operation  of  all  people  interested  in  lit- 
erary and  scientific  progress. 

"The  mountains  of  Switzerland,  especially 
since  the  advent  of  mountain  railroads,  have  made 
that  country,  with  all  its  climatic  drawbacks,  a 
Mecca  for  tourists  from  all  over  the  world.  When 
the  beauties  and  attractions  of  the  Sierra  Madre 
are  fully  made  known  why  may  not  a  large  per- 
centage of  this  vast  tourist  travel  be  attracted  to 
our  very  midst  ? ' ' 

*  *  *  * 


PROF.  T.  S.  C.  LOWE. 


21 

The  A  few  years  since,  a  man  whose 

Mount  Lowe     boyhood  was  passed  among  the 
Railway.  mountains  of  New  England,  con- 

ceived the  idea  that  by  the  use  of 
modern  electrical  appliances  the  summits  of  the 
highest  peaks  of  the  Sierra  Madre  could  be 


Group  of  Alders  near  Mount  I<owe  Springs. 

reached  and  an  easy  route  opened  up  whereby 
people  could  scale  these  heights  with  the  same 
ease  they  ride  over  a  modern  railway.  The  re- 
sult was  the  construction  of  the  Mount  Lowe 


P.       O 

x  W 

W  a 

Is 

i-r  & 


§1 


<    (X, 


23 

Railway,  the  most  scenic  railroad  on  earth.  The 
originator  and  constructor  was  Professor  T.  S.  C. 
Lowe.  He  constantly  kept  in  view  the  artistic 
effects  as  well  as  the  engineering  conditions,  and 
the  result  has  been  a  road  of  easy  grades  and  one 
where  the  most  artistic  pictures  of  scenery  are 
brought  into  relief. 


Scene  near  Maple  Springs,  Mount  1,0  we  Railway. 

Origin  of  the  Mount     The  genesis  of  the  Mount 

Lowe  Railway.          Lowe  Railway  is  not  far 

away.       In     1889     some 

preliminary  surveys  that  had  been  made  for  the 


In  Glen  Canyon,  near  IJcho  Mountain,  Mount  I,owe. 


25 

purpose  of  scaling  the  Sierra  Madre  were  sub- 
mitted to  Professor  T.  S.  C.  Lowe.  He  became 
interested  in  the  matter  and  decided  to  make  a 
personal  examination  of  the  ground,  and  shortly 
afterwards  placed  his  corps  of  engineers  in  the 
field  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  thorough  ^ur- 
vey  in  order  to  determine  whether  the  work  was 
practicable.  After  the  engineers  had  been  at  work 
upon  another  route  for  many  months  Professor 
Lowe  cut  the  Gordian  knot  by  suggesting  the 
now  world-renowned  Great  Cable  Incline.  It  was 
like  a  revelation  to  the  engineers,  and  from  this 
on  the  engineering  problems  were  of  easy  solu- 
tion. 

The  route  starts  from  Altadena,  a  beautiful 
residence  section  about  four  miles  north  of  Pasa- 
dena, from  which  point  an  electric  railway  runs 
over  the  high  mesa  and  up  Rubio  canyon,  a  dis- 
tance of  2,y2  miles.  The  lower  portion  of  this 
distance  gives  some  very  beautiful  views  of  val- 
ley and  ocean,  and  as  the  route  enters  the  canyon 
it  winds  in  and  out  following  the  devious  course 
of  the  sparkling  little  stream  which  leaps  over 
the  rocks,  now  crossing  smaller  canyons  on  sub- 
stantial bridges,  and  then  cutting  through  solid 
rock,  making  a  picturesque  road  which,  were  it 
not  overshadowed  by  the  greater  glories  of  the 
upper  portion,  would  of  itself  be  famous.  At  Ru- 
bio canyon  the  foot  of  the  Great  Cable  Incline  is 
reached  at  an  altitude  of  2,200  feet  above  the  sea. 

*  *  *  * 


2? 

Rubio  Canyon.  Rubio  Canyon  above  the  pavil- 
ion is  one  of  the  most  pictur- 
esque and  beautiful  spots  to  be  found  in  the 
mountains.  Immediately  on  entering  the  visitor 
is  charmed  and  surprised  with  the  richness  of 
the  verdure,  the  trees,  shrubs,  ferns  and  flowers 
that  greet  his  eye.  From  the  valley  the  moun- 
tains seemed  barren, — now  we  see  that  they  are 
fairly  covered  with  mountain  mahogany,  lilac, 
holly,  and  other  chaparral,  while  in  the  deeper 
canyons,  pines,  spruces,  bays,  maples,  sycamores 
and  live  oaks  flourish  in  large  numbers.  Ferns, 
mosses  and  trailing  vines  in  profusion  and  variety 
cover  the  rocks,  while 

1  The  witching  tangle  of  the  maiden-hair, 
The  sweet  grace  of  the  gold  and  silver  ferns, 
The  nodding  coffee  fern  with  beauty  rare ' 

seek  shelter  in  hidden  nooks,  whose  perfect  soli- 
tude is  only  penetrated  by  the  lover  and  the  en- 
thusiast. 

Among  the  objects  of  interest  in  Rubio  Can- 
yon are  Suspended  Boulder,  fern  glens,  moss 
grottos,  peculiar  stone  formations,  grand  chasms, 
Ribbon  Rock,  Thalehaha,  and  nine  other  ex- 
quisitely beautiful  waterfalls.  Just  below  the 
Suspended  Boulder  is  Mirror  Lake.  It  extends 
across  the  complete  width  of  the  canyon,  which 
somewhat  narrows  at  this  point,  and  reaches  for 
quite  a  distance,  being  bridged  by  the  plank  walk 
leading  to  the  Grand  Chasm  and  Thalehaha  Falls. 
The  exquisite  reflections  of  the  trees,  shrubs  and 
towrering  rocks,  together  with  the  electric  lights 
and  Japanese  lanterns  on  festive  nights,  give  to 
Mirror  Lake  an  indescribable  charm. 


Great  Cable  Incline,  Mount  I,owe. 


29 

The  Great  The  distinguishing  feature  of  the 
Cable  Incline,  road  below  the  summit  of  Echo 
Mountain  is  the  Great  Cable  In- 
cline, run  by  a  novel  application  of  electric  and 
water  power. 

This  marvelous  piece  of  railroad  engineering 
has  called  forth  the  unstinted  praise  of  many 
eminent  engineers.  The  scientific  press  has  been 
unanimous  in  expatiating  upon  its  unique  fea- 
tures and  designates  it  "the  greatest  mountain 
railway  enterprise  in  existence,"  and  says  "the 
engineering  problems  have  been  solved  in  a  man- 
ner to  challenge  admiration." 

This  Incline  extends  from  Rubio  Pavilion 
2,200  feet  above  the  sea,  to  the  summit  of  Echo 
Mountain,  3,500  feet  in  altitude.  It  is  upward 
of  3,000  feet  in  length,  and  makes  a  direct  ascent 
of  about  1,400  feet.  The  grade  begins  at  60  per 
cent.,  after  passing  the  turnout  it  is  62  per  cent 
for  quite  a  distance,  then  it  makes  two  "buckles," 
one  to  58  per  cent.,  and  on  nearing  the  summit 
to  48  per  cent.  Sixty-two  per  cent,  means  a  rise 
of  62  feet  in  going  forward  100  feet,  which  gives 
an  idea  of  its  great  steepness. 

The  cars  are  permanently  attached  to  an  end- 
less cable,  and  are  so  balanced  that  in  ascending 
and  descending  they  pass  each  other  at  an  auto- 
matic turnout,  exactly  midway  on  the  Incline 
and  are  so  arranged  as  to  keep  passengers  always 
on  the  level,  regardless  of  the  steep  grades  of  the 
Incline. 

The  cable  is  of  the  finest  steel  and  was  thor- 
oughly tested  to  a  strain  of  ONE  HUNDRED 
TONS,  and,  as  under  any  circumstances  the 


"White  Chariot"  Hearing  Summit  of  Echo  Mountain. 
On  I<east  Grade  of  Great  Cable  Incline. 


31 

loaded  cars  will  never  exceed  FIVE  TONS,  its 
absolute  safety  is  at  once  apparent. 

The  view,  in  ascending,  is  indescribably  grand. 
The  motion  is  smooth  and  easy  as  if  soaring  to 
the  clouds  on  wings. 

At  first,  the  mountains  composing  the  Rubio 
Amphitheater  appear  to  rise  with  the  car,  and 
yet  the  view  enlarges  every  moment.  Passing 
through  Granite  Gorge, — an  immense  cut  in  the 
mountain  slope,  where  all  the  workmen  who 
could  possibly  be  crowded  upon  the  mass  were 
engaged  for  eight  long  months  before  a  single  tie 
could  be  laid — over  the  Macpherson  Trestle — 
an  immense  bridge,  200  feet  long  and  100  feet 
higher  at  one  end  than  the  other  —  the  San 
Gabriel  Valley  unfolds  its  incomparable  charms, 
and,  as  the  elevation  increases,  the  view  expands 
until,  on  reaching  the  verandas  of  Echo  Moun- 
tain Chalet,  the  whole  scene  is  presented  in  its 
full  glory. 

The  grade  of  this  Incline  was  such  that  burros 
had  to  carry  cement  and  water  for  building  the 
walls  and  buttresses,  before  the  track  could"  be 
laid,  and,  as  there  were  many  points  where  not 
even  burros  could  climb  in  safety,  men  carried 
the  required  materials  on  their  shoulders. 


Echo  Seen   from   below,   Echo   Mountain 

Mountain,  appears  as  a  mere  abutment  from 
the  main  range,  but  when  one 
stands  on  its  summit  the  name  "Mountain"  is 
then  seen  to  be  singularly  appropriate,  for  it  is 
dissevered,  except  by  a  small  "saddle,"  from 
the  main  range  by  Glen  and  Echo  Canyons — 


r 


33 

canyons  half  a  mile  and  more  in  width  and  over 
a  thousand  feet  in  depth.  Hence  the  location  on 
this  mountain,  midway  between  the  San  Gabriel 
Valley  and  Mount  Lowe,  with  towering  moun- 
tains and  abysmal  canyons,  affords  a  variety  of 
scenery  almost  inconceivable  to  the  dweller  in 
the  valley. 

This  outlook,  3,500  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
sea,  with  mountains,  foothills,  ever  verdant  val- 
leys, cities,  towns,  villages,  old  missions,  sea  beach, 
shipping,  islands  and  ocean  in  full  view,  has  no 
equal. 

Thirty  miles  of  bridle  roads  radiate  from  Echo 
Mountain,  on  which  guests  may  roam  or  ride  into 
romantic  canyons,  dells  and  nooks  innumerable 
with  freedom  and  safety. 

These  foot  paths  and  bridle  roads  and  the 
scenery  they  reach  are  not  equalled  at  any  resort 
on  the  surface  of  the  globe.  An  entire  week  can 
easily  be  spent  in  rambles  without  visiting  the 
same  place  twice,  and  then  only  a  small  portion 
of  the  delightful  mountain  and  canyon  recesses 
will  have  been  explored. 


Echo  Mountain     On  the  crest  of  Echo  Mountain 
House.  Professor    Lowe    placed    two 

hotels,  one  'The  Chalet," 
which  still  remains,  the  other,  "Echo  Mountain 
House,"  which  was  destroyed  by  fire  three  years 
ago.  It  was  a  superbly  equipped  hotel,  of  mag- 
nificent proportions  and  unequalled  outlook, 
where  many  visitors  from  all  parts  of  the  world 
congregated.  It  is  the  intention  of  the  Pacific 
Electric  Railway  to  rebuild  Echo  Mountain  House 


35 


in  the  near  future.  This  decision  will  be  gratify- 
ing to  those  who  have  experienced  the  delights 
of  this  beautiful  hotel  in  the  past.  The  exact  lo- 
cation of  the  new  hotel  is  not  vet  decided. 


Lowe  This  Observatory  is  located  on  a 

Observatory,  slope  above  Echo  Mountain.  A 
walk  has  been  constructed  from 
the  Hotel  to  the  Observatory,  so  that  all  who  de- 
sire to  visit  it  may  do  so  without  inconvenience 
or  fatigue. 

It  is  presided  over  by  Professor  Edgar  Larkin. 
The  instrument  with  which  he  is  now  searching 
the  heavens  is  a  1 6-inch  refractor,  made  in  his 
best  days,  by  Alvan  Clark,  the  late  lamented  lens- 
maker  of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  and  it  is,  according 
to  the  maker's  testimony,  the  best  glass  he  ever 
made. 

Professor  Larkin  thus  writes  of  the  advantages 
of  the  Lowe  Observatory  for  astronomical  work: 

"The  site  of  this  institution  is  ideal,  both  for 
telescopic  and  spectroscopic  purposes.  So  great  is 
the  purity  of  the  air  that  both  these  instruments 
can  be  used  in  the  most  accurate  measurement. 
The  definition  of  the  stars  and  disks  of  the  planets 
is  perfect,  and  the  entire  year  presents  but  few 
nights  during  which  a  micrometer  cannot  be  used. 
Stellar  spectra  are  clear  cut  and  steady,  and  in 
the  solar  spectrum  the  Fraunhofer  lines  are  per- 
fectly denned,  the  thin  lines,  in  diameter  equal 
to  that  of  a  spider's  web,  can  be  seen  without 
difficulty.  Few  observatories  in  the  world  have 
a  clearer  sky,  or  a  location  presenting  less  trouble 
from  air  currents  and  changes.  To  illustrate  the 


The  16  inch  Equatorial  Telescope  of  the  I<owe  Observatory, 
Echo  Mountain. 


37 

clearness  of  the  atmosphere,  it  will  be  merely 
necessary  to  state  that  the  trapezium  in  the  Great 
Nebula  in  Orion  shows  distinctly  at  the  exact 
instant  of  rising  over  the  mountain  peaks !  The 
writer  has  often  observed  the  trapezium — the  en- 
tire seven  stars — when  only  one  minute  had 
elapsed  since  rising-  over  the  rocks  forming-  the 
summit  of  the  mountains !  This  will  be  appre- 
ciated by  all  who  have  long  used  a  telescope  in  any 
of  the  Eastern  observatories.  The  moon  is  white 
— not  yellow,  and  the  floors  of  the  craters,  the 
cones,  whence  escaped  molten  lava  ages  ago,  and 
the  delicate  tracery  of  shadows  are  revealed  with 
marvellous  accuracy  of  detail. 

"Nebulae  can  be  seen  here  that  are  invisible  in 
many  other  instruments  of  equal  or  greater  aper- 
ture. Double  stars  are  separated  at  this  observa- 
tory, that  would  seem  to  be  beyond  the  power  of 
a  sixteen-inch  glass.  Closely  packed  clusters  are 
dispersed  into  separate  diamonds,  rubies  and  sap- 
phires. But  no  tongue  or  pen  can  describe  the 
glories  of  the  Milky  Way.  Imagine  jet  black 
velvet  spread  over  with  heaps,  streamers  and 
spirals,  made  up  of  every  possible  color  of  prec- 
ious gem — with  diamonds  in  excess.  These  stars 
all  separately  invisible  to  the  unaided  eye,  are 
seen  as  individual  points  in  the  telescope.  They 
glitter  with  supernal  light,  and  scintillate  in  every 
hue  of  the  spectrum.  They  are  piled  up  by  the 
million  on  the  inconceivable  blackness  of  infinite 
space,  for  never-ending  space  is  black  in  the  tele- 
scope. The  Zodiacal  light  in  autumnal  evenings 
and  mornings  is  seen  extending  almost  to  the 
zenith — a  cone  of  pearly  light. 


38 

Professor  Larkin.     Edgar  Luciene  Larkin  was 
born  in  a  log  cabin,  twelve 

miles  north  of  Ottawa,  La  Salle  County,  Illinois, 
on  April  5th,  1847. 

But  why?  To  this  moment  it  has  been  an 
inscrutable  mystery  why  Nature  allowed  this 
event  to  occur.  It  happened  on  a  farm.  My 
parents  were  poor  enough  to  furnish  a  topic  to 
a  writer  of  modern  socialism,  such  as  "unequal 
distribution  of  wealth" ;  "submerged  nine-tenths"  ; 
"why  billionaires  exist"  and  the  like.  The  log 
hut  was  in  a  beautiful  place,  near  a  stream  of 
clear,  cool  water — Indian  Creek.  It  runs  along 
through  the  north,  from  west  to  east,  bending 
to  the  south,  and  discharges  into  the  Illinois 
River  at  Ottawa.  This  stream  is  lined  for  miles 
with  a  magnificent  forest,  called  the  "woods." 
Stately  trees  of  oak,  ash,  elm,  maple,  walnut  and 
many  other  species  waved  in  the  winds,  and  in  the 
autumn,  colors  beyond  description  fell  on  the 
leaves  and  they  were  all  splashed  with  careless 
gold  and  scarlet.  And  the  "sear  and  yellow  leaf" 
abounded.  And  "Oh !  those  days  in  the  woods !" 
— Nature  days — whose  memory  now  is  enough 
to  awaken  the  highest  impulse  in  the  mind.  The 
neighbors  did  not  find  fault  with  my  folks,  and 
they  were  considered  to  be  respectable,  by  even 
the  nearest — not  more  than  a  mile  away.  Father 
was  just  ordinary,  and  the  friends  said  that  I 
"took  after  him."  He  farmed  and  mother  mere- 
ly kept  house — the  hut.  These  were  pioneer 
days ;  a  few  cabins  broke  the  distant  line  of  hori- 
zon, to  the  west  and  south.  As  far  as  could  be 
seen,  even  from  the  writer's  perch  in  the  top  of 
a  tall  tree,  there  was  one  vast  expanse  of  tall, 


PROF.    EDGA'<   I,.   I.ARKIN, 
Director  of  the  L,owe  Observatory. 


40 

green  grass  waving  in  the  wind.  But  how  beauti- 
ful !  Climbing  trees  to  see  the  "waves  roll"  was 
ideal.  The  wind  tumbled  and  tossed  the  grass 
into  rolling  waves,  miles  in  length.  The  scene 
was  wonderful ;  it  was  that  of  a  prairie  in  Illinois. 
Just  now,  as  we  write,  looking  out  of  the  win- 
dow, the  waves  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  are  seen 
thirty  miles  away.  They  are  not  more  impres- 
sive than  those  majestic  waves  in  the  grass.  For 
the  writer  became  as  expert  in  tree-climbing  as 
his  ore-historic  and  remote  ancestors  in  South 
American  forests.  My  mother — still  living — is  a 
woman  of  mental  force  and  ability,  of  high  mor- 
ality and  nobility  of  mind;  but  she  could  not 
bring  me  up  right,  that  is,  to  be  a  farmer.  The 
writer  was  sent  to  plow  corn,  and  from  subse- 
quent events  he  now  believes  that  he  actually 
did ;  the  weeds  escaped  entirely.  I  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  dairy  department,  and  had  sole 
charge  of  the  cows.  These  loving  creatures  and 
the  writer  became  fast,  friends.  One  was  "ring 
streaked,"  and  another  "spotted  and  speckled.'' 
Old  "brindle"  led  the  procession  down  to  the 
c^eek  for  water,  with  the  writer  in  the  midst. 
And  "the  lowing  herds  wound  slowly  o'er  the 
lea,"  in  those  happy  childhood  and  bucolic  days. 
A  mighty  event  took  place ;  grandfather  put  up  a 
frame  house,  with  boards  outside,  real  boards  of 
pine,  brought  to  Ottawa  on  the  new  canal ;  and 
the  boards  were  painted  white ! 

My  father  died  when  I  was  eleven  years  of 
age,  so  mother  and  I  went  to  live  in  the  new 
white  house,  with  the  grandparents.  But  there 
was  no  schoolhouse;  the  settlers  were  poor,  but 
finally  one  was  erected.  It  was  not  red,  in  fact 


never  had  a  coat  of  paint ;  and  was  about  the 
size  of  a  large  room  in  a  modern  dwelling. 
Teachers  were  scarce  and  books  likewise.  An- 
other event  happened ;  a  retired  German  physician 
came  to  "farm  it."  He  had  a  library.  I  bor- 
rowed all  the  books  he  had  in  English,  but  the 
great  volumes  in  German  were  as  hieroglyphics. 
School  opened  in  September,  1858,  and  the  oner- 
ous, difficult  and  discouraging  job  of  "educat- 
ing" the  writer  began. 

Then  the  greatest  event  of  all  occurred,  on  an 
auspicious  day,  October  5th,  1858,  and  I  was 
asleep.  Grandmother  came  in  haste  at  about  10 
P.  M.,  aroused  me  and  said,  "Oh !  Edgar,  come 
and  see  the  comet."  When  behold !  the  mighty 
comet  of  Donati  seemed  to  span  the  heavens,  and 
looked  as  though  it  came  out  of  the  black  forests 
and  extended  to  the  zenith.  Mortal  eye  has  not 
seen  a  more  wonderful  display. 

Its  blazing  nucleus  was  then  passing  the  star 
Arcturus,  and  the  scene  is  now  in  the  writer's 
mind  as  though  it  were  but  yesterday.  Cuts  of 
the  comet  at  the  time  of  passing  Arcturus  may  be 
seen  in  works  on  astronomy.  Next  day  the 
writer  decided  to  begin  the  study  of  astronomy. 
But  how  without  books  ?  The  teacher  had  a  copy 
of  Burritt's  Geography  of  the  Heavens  and  Atlas. 
The  writer  asked  her  to  sell  it;  she  would  for 
$1.00,  although  it  cost  her  more.  But  the  dol- 
lar! Grandfather  was  perpetually  paying  for 
land.  Dollars  were  exceedingly  scarce.  Grand- 
mother had  one  gold  dollar;  this  she  gave  me 
and  the  book  was  purchased.  A  surveyor  living 
near  had  a  four-inch  lens.  He  placed  it  in  a 
square  tube  of  wood,  and  with  one  eyepiece  made 


42 

up  a  telescope,  which  he  loaned  to  me.  So  the 
study  of  astronomy  was  commenced  with  this 
outfit  in  my  eleventh  year.  The  first  work  was  to 
trace  the  path  of  the  comet  among  the  stars  on 
the  atlas.  The  pencil  mark  is  on  the  atlas  yet, 
with  1858  scrawled  in  boyish  figures.  Five  terms 
of  school  of  three  months  each  were  attended, 
when  arrangements  were  made  for  me  to  go  to  a 
high  school  and  later,  an  academy  in  Ottawa. 
Then  came  disaster,  weakness  of  the  eyes. 
School,  reading,  the  telescope,  all  had  to  go ;  and 
with  heavy  heart  the  little  telescope  was  returned 
to  the  good  old  surveyor.  Grandfather  died,  the 
dear  old  home  was  broken  up ;  we  moved  to  a 
nearby  village,  Earlville,  111.  In  my  fourteenth 
year  my  eyesight  became  strong  enough  to  per- 
mit two  terms  in  a  graded  school  of  six  months 
each. 

This  "finished"  the  work  of  education,  for 
events  were  such  that  I  never  entered  school 
again.  In  1879  the  writer  built  a  private  ob- 
servatorv  in  New  Windsor,  111.,  and  on  January 
ist,  1880,  a  fine  six-inch  Clark  equatorial,  with 
circles,  was  set  upon  its  pier.  In  the  spring  of 
1888,  Knox  College,  in  Galesburg,  111.,  erected 
a  good  observatory  on  the  campus.  All  the  in- 
struments were  removed  from  New  Windsor  and 
placed  in  the  new  dome.  The  writer  was  director 
of  the  Knox  Observatory  from  Aug.  ist,  1888, 
to  Aug.  ist,  1895. 

Upon  coming  to  this  fairy  land  of  the  earth. 
Southern  California,  I  was  appointed  director  of 
this  mountain  observatory,  the  Lowe,  taking 
charge  on  Aug.  nth,  1900.  Everything  happened 
in  August.  Here  is  an  elegant  Clark  sixteen- 


43 

inch  telescope,  with  spectroscope  and  tele-camera, 
with  accessories.  The  writer  has  not  startled  the 
world  by  capital  discoveries  in  astronomy,  but 
has  confined  his  work  to  writing  for  journals  and 
magazines.  Enough  has  been  published  to  make 
several  volumes.  Only  one  series  has  been  print- 
ed in  book  form — "Radiant  Energy."  Study  of 
science  has  been  continuous,  save  for  one  deflec- 
tion of  six  years,  which  were  devoted  with  intense 
interest  to  Hindoo,  Iranian,  Persian,  Egyptian 
and  Greek  philosophy  and  Esoteric  mysteries,  the 
occult. 

The  writer  is  a  life  Fellow  of  the  American 
Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  of 
the  Southern  California  Academy  of  Science,  and 
of  the  Astronomical  Society  of  the  Pacific, 
but  has  not  surprised  any  of  these  societies  by 
the  discovery  of  a  law  greater  than  gravity,  nor 
what  matter  is,  nor  electricity,  nor  how  grass 
grows,  or  why  we  are  here  on  earth.  None  of 
thf1  mean  things  that  the  writer  has  performed 
are  inserted  on  account  of  the  inordinate  length 
of  this  note." 


The  About  1600  A.  D.,  Kepler  placed 

Spectroscope,  a  prism  in  a  beam  of  sunlight 
and  saw  what  had  not  before 
been  seen — so  far  as  known — the  first  solar  spec- 
trum. A  century  later  Newton  darkened  a  room, 
admitted  solar  rays  through  a  round  aperture  in 
a  shutter,  passed  them  through  a  prism  and  ob- 
tained a  clearer  spectrum  than  Kepler's.  Little 
was  thought  of  these  things,  however,  until, 
when  in  1802,  Wollaston  made  a  slit  in  a  shutter, 


White  Chariot  nearing  the  Chalet  on  Echo  Mountain. 


45 

projected  a  spectrum,  in  which  he  was  surprised 
to  see  a  few  dark  lines.  In  1814  Fraunhofer 
made  a  spectrum  in  the  same  way,  but  happened 
to  look  at  it  with  a  telescope.  This  act  changed 
the  course  of  the  science  of  optics  for  all  time; 
it  was  the  origin  of  Spectrum  Analysis,  one  of  the 
chief  products  of  the  human  mind,  one  of  the 
corner-stones  upon  which  rests  the  structure  of 
modern  science.  Men's  minds  immediately  be- 
gan to  expand,  and  a  period  of  mental  activity 
set  in,  the  like  of  which  was  never  known  before. 
Fraunhofer  saw  hundreds  of  lines,  but  the  great 
spectroscope  in  the  Mount  Lowe  Observatory 
shows  thousands,  in  width  from  that  of  a  spider- 
web  to  one-tenth  of  a  millimeter.  They  are  the 
most  valuable  set  of  lines  known.  They  enable 
finite  man  to  tell  what  the  earth,  sun  and  stars, 
meteors,  comets  and  nebulae  are  composed  of. 
The  prism  of  Newton  and  Fraunhofer  is  now 
displaced  by  the  diffraction  grating — ruled  by 
Rowland  14,438  lines  to  the  inch.  These  striae 
break  up  light  into  its  elements,  reflect  them  to 
the  eye,  and  in  solar  and  stellar  light  reveal  the 
absorption  lines.  The  spectroscope  of  the  Lowe 
Observatory  made  by  that  accomplished  optician 
Brashear  is  one  of  the  finest. 


47 

Great  The  Great  World's  Fair  Search- 

World's  Fair  light,  which  is  now  so  well 
Searchlight.  known  from  its  operation  on 
Echo  Mountain,  first  became 
famous  at  the  World's  Fair,  Chicago,  where  it 
excited  great  interest,  and  surpassed  all  other 
exhibits  in  its  line.  After  the  Fair,  it  was  taken 
to  San  Francisco  and  exhibited  at  the  Mid- Win- 
ter Fair,  where  it  delighted  thousands  from  the 
Bonet  electric  tower,  264  feet  high.  When  the 
Mid-Winter  Fair  was  over,  Professor  Lowe  pur- 
chased it  and  removed  it  to  Echo  Mountain,  where 
it  rests  at  an  altitude  of  3,500  feet  above  sea  level. 
Until  this  great  searchlight  was  established  in  its 
present  location  its  powers  could  not  be  brought 
out  on  account  of  its  location  so  near  the  general 
level  of  the  surrounding  country.  Here,  how- 
ever, it  is  so  located  that  its  rays  can  be  seen  for 
150  miles  on  the  ocean,  and  the  most  distant 
mountain  peaks  can  be  made  visible  by  its  pene- 
trating rays.  The  beam  of  light  is  so  powerful 
that  a  newspaper  can  be  read  for  a  distance  of 
thirty-five  miles,  and  its  full  sweep  illuminates 
the  peaks  of  mountains  which  are  hundreds  of 
miles  apart. 

It  is  of  3,000.000  candle  power,  and  stands  on 
a  wooden  base,  built  in  octagon  form,  which  has 
a  diameter  of  about  eight  feet.  The  searchlight 
itself  stands  about  eleven  feet  high,  and  its  total 
weight  is  6,000  Ibs.,  yet  it  is  so  perfectly  mounted 
and  balanced  that  a  child  can  move  it  in  any  direc- 
tion. 

The  reflecting  lens  is  three  and  a  quarter  inches 
thick  at  the  edges  and  only  one-sixteenth  of  an 
inch  at  the  center,  and  weighs  about  800  Ibs.  The 


49 

metal  ring  in  which  the  lens  is  mounted  weighs 
750  Ibs.,  the  total  weight  of  lens,  ring  and  cover 
being  about  1,600  Ibs.  This  great  mirror  is 
mounted  at  one  end  of  the  big  drum,  the  outer 
end  of  which  is  furnished  with  a  door,  consisting 
of  a  narrow  metal  rim,  in  which  are  fixed  a  num- 
ber of  plate  glass  strips  five-sixteenths  of  an  inch 
thick  and  six  inches  wide.  The  value  orf  this 
great  searchlight  in  meteorological  work  has  al- 
ready been  demonstrated  on  a  small  scale.  When 
there  is  moisture  in  the  atmosphere,  and  varying 
wind-currents,  the  light  turned  upwards  discovers 
the  directions  in  which  the  wind  is  conveying 
the  clouds,  and  aids  in  revealing  the  conditions 
that  cause  these  variations. 


Operating  Machinery     Like  many  other  things 
of  the  Great  in    connection    with    the 

Cable  Incline.  Mount    Lowe    Railway, 

the  machinery  is  unique 
and  unlike  anything  ever  before  constructed. 

The  power  was  originally  furnished  by  water. 
For  the  first  nine  months  the  Great  Cable  Incline 
was  operated  by  water  power  and  electric  power 
generated  by  two  monster  gas  engines.  Now  the 
power  is  supplied  from  the  Pasadena  plant  of  the 
Pacific  Electric  Railway.  It  is  transmitted  by 
large  copper  conductors  to  the  Echo  Mountain 
power  house,  supplying  current  to  the  100  horse- 
power electric  motor,  which  makes  800  revolu- 
tions per  minute.  Then  by  a  series  of  gears  the 
revolutions  are  reduced  from  800  to  17  per  min- 
ute, which  is  the  speed  at  which  the  massive  grip- 
sheave  turns.  The  grip-sheave  consists  of  a 


I,eontine  Falls,  near  Echo  Mountain,  Mount  I<owe  Railway. 


51 

tremendously  heavy  wheel,  on  which  about  70 
automatic  steel  jaws  are  affixed.  As  the  wheel 
revolves,  these  jaws  close  and  grip  the  endless 
cable,  to  which  the  cars  are  permanently  attached, 
and  thus  are  they  raised  or  lowered  as  occasion 
requires.  By  this  method  there  is  practically  no 
wear  whatever  to  the  cable.  It  is  not  strained  and 
chafed  by  the  constant  operation  of  gripping  as 
on  the  street  railway  cars,  where  the  inertia  of 
trains  of  cars  of  many  tons  weight  has  to  be  over- 
come by  the  gripping  of  the  ever-moving  cable. 

Every  safety  device  and  appliance  of  known 
utility  that  could  be  used  has  been  placed  upon 
the  machinery  and  thoroughly  tested,  so  that  the 
unanimous  verdict  of  the  many  eminent  en- 
gineers who  have  scientifically  examined  in  detail 
the  machinery  and  its  working  is  a  deserved 
tribute  to  the  foresight  of  Professor  Lowe.  That 
verdict  is,  that  it  is  the  safest  railroad  ever  con- 
structed ;  and  the  possibility  of  accident  is  reduced 
to  a  lower  minimum  than  on  any  cable,  electric  or 
steam  system  in  the  world. 


Glen  Canyon.  This  is  one  of  the  many  quiet 
and  secret  ferny  nooks  reached 
in  a  few  minutes  from  Echo  Mountain  House. 
Bridle  roads  and  foot-paths  reach  these  secluded 
spots,  and  there  in  ferny  dells,  surrounded  by 
towering  trees  and  majestic  rocks,  charmed  by 
the  babbling  brooks,  the  rustling  of  the  leaves 
and  the  sweet  singing  of  thousands  of  birds,  one 
may  while  away  the  hours  in  delicious  restfulness. 

*  *  *  * 


AMONG  THE  GIANT  FERNS. 
Glen  Canyon,  near  Echo  Mountain,  Mount  I,owe  Railway. 


53 

Mount  Lowe  Eight.    To  ride  on  well  constructed 
bridle   roads   up  mountain 

slopes,  winding  in  and  out  on  diversified  paths, 
through  and  by  bowers  of  fragrant  trees,  shrubs 
and  flowers,  looking  up  through  towering  pines 
to  majestic  cliffs  and  ponderous  rocks,  looking 
doivn  into  the  depths  of  vast  canyons,  where  deer 


On  the  Bridle  Roads  of  the  Mount  I<owe  "8." 

find  shady  coverts,  and  looking  out  upon  scenes 
of  perfect  beauty  and  sublimity — these  things  fill 
the  body  with  vigor  and  buoyant  enthusiasm, 
and  the  mind  with  lasting  pictures  of  increasing 
interest. 


55 

Realizing  this  Professor  Lowe  early  had  con- 
structed more  than  thirty  miles  of  wide  and  easy- 
graded  bridle  roads  radiating  from  Alpine  Tavern 
to  all  the  higher  peaks  and  summits  of  the  range. 
The  most  important  sections  of  these  roads  are 
known  as  the  "Mount  Lowe  Eight,"  for,  in  mak- 
ing the  complete  ride  to  the  summit  of  Mount 
Lowe  from  Echo  Mountain  and  return,  the  figure 
"8"  is  described,  the  rider  crossing  his  own  path 
in  one  place  only,  and  nowhere  else  riding  twice 
on  the  same  road. 


The  Phantom  Sea  One  of  the  most 

As  Seen  from  Echo  exquisitely  beau- 

Mountain  and  Mount  Lowe,     tiful  sights  ever 

witnessed  is  when 

a  low  fog  covers  the  San  Gabriel  Valley.  This 
fog  never  rises  above  a  level  of  about  2,700  to 
3,000  feet,  and  when  one  is  on  Echo  Mountain, 
3,500  feet  in  elevation,  the  upper  surface  of  this 
fog  is  spread  out  "like  a  phantom  sea"  below. 
The  "cities  of  the  plain"  are  covererd  with  this 
snow-white  or  creamy  pall.  Underneath  is  partial 
gloom  and  dampness.  Above,  the  sun  shines 
upon  a  silent  sea,  whose  waves  are  tossing  and 
lifting,  swaying  and  waving,  until  finally — gen- 
erally between  8.30  and  9.30  in  the  morning — 
the  heat,  in  dissipating  the  glowing  white  ocean, 
builds  fantastic  and  mysterious  forms  on  its  sur- 
face, and  draws  them  upwards  to  rapidly  swallow 
them  up  and  make  them  disappear  in  its  warm 
embrace.  Such  a  sight  stirs  the  soul  to  its 
greatest  depths,  and  suggests  thoughts  sublime 
and  soul-uplifting. 


Point  Diablo,  Mount  lyOwe  Railway. 


57 

The  sea  is  made  of  the  exhalations  from  the 
Pacific  ocean  and  covers  the  whole  valley  with  its 
white,  misty  veil  on  certain  mornings.  It  is  1,500 
to  2,000  feet  deep,  and  never  reaches  the  summit 
of  Echo  Mountain.  As  seen  from  the  great  hotel 
it  looks  like  a  vast  expanse  of  hummocky  ice,  as 
is  often  noticed  in  winter  off  the  Atlantic  Coast. 


The  Alpine  The  guest  who  has  reached  Echo 
Division.  Mountain  should  not  conclude  that 
he  has  seen  the  chief  beauties  which 
align  the  route  of  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway. 
Not  so !  What  he  has  seen  are  but  the  adorn- 
ments which  are  festooned  around  the  vestibule 
of  the  greater  glories  of  the  Alpine  division 
which  carries  him  into  the  very  heart  of  the 
Sierra  Madre  range,  and  amid  the  solitude  which 
reigns  among  the  higher  peaks  and  spurs.  This 
division  extends  from  Echo  Mountain  to  Ye 
Alpine  tavern,  a  distance  of  five  miles.  The  road 
is  a  substantially  built  electric  road,  with  grades 
but  slightly  exceeding  seven  per  cent.,  on  which 
the  cnrs  are  easily  propelled  by  electricity.  In- 
dorsing all  that  has  been  said  of  the  beauties  of 
Rubio,  of  the  Great  Cable  Incline,  and  of  Echo 
Mountain,  yet  these  afford  but  comparatively 
limited  ranges  of  vision,  sometimes  obscured  by 
the  fogs  and  smoke  of  the  valley.  On  the  Alpine 
division,  however,  one  is  above  these  impediments 
to  sight,  and  the  range  of  vision  extends  until  lost 
on  the  distant  horizon.  The  air  is  clear  and  trans- 
parent, so  that  mountain  peaks,  distant  islands 
and  far-away  valleys  seem  to  draw  near  and  pass 
in  review  like  a  silent  procession  of  giants. 


59 

Nature  In  the  construction  of  the  railroad 

and  Art.  Professor  Lowe  exhibited  the  same 
skill  and  energy  that  were  so 
manifest  in  the  lower  portions  of  the  route.  The 
grade  of  the  road  has  been  made  so  low  that  one 
imagines  he  is  riding  on  a  level  surface  rather 
than  climbing  the  steep  and  rugged  sides  of  the 
Sierras.  This  grade  enables  the  cars  to  be  pro- 
pelled with  a  great  saving  of  power,  and  at  what- 
ever speed  necessary  to  give  passengers  the  finest 
views  of  the  incomparable  scenery  which  aligns 
the  route.  With  that  fine  artistic  taste  which  the 
originator  of  the  enterprise  has  shown  in  every 
detail  of  the  construction,  he  has  built  the  track 
just  where  the  best  views  of  mountain,  valley  and 
sea  are  to  be  found,  so  that  the  road,  instead  of 
disfiguring  the  landscape,  as  do  so  many  of  the 
old-fashioned  cog-wheel  roads,  adds  to  the  beauty 
and  charm  of  the  scenery  and  gives  to  the  particu- 
lar section  of  the  Sierra  Madre  where  the  "City 
on  the  Mountain"  sits,  an  added  charm. 

The  road  climbs  up  the  sides  of  the  mountain  in 
graceful  curves,  and  as  one  is  being  carried  along 
he  often  wonders  where  an  opening  to  the  appar- 
ently impassable  walls  of  granite  which  hem  in 
the  way  can  be  found.  At  one  point  of  view,  by 
looking  up  and  down  the  steep  sides  of  the  moun- 
tain, nine  different  tracks  can  be  seen  rising  one 
above  the  other.  One  of  the  unique  features  of 
construction  is  a  bridge,  which  spans  a  canyon, 
and  rounds  a  mountain  peak,  thus  forming  a 
complete  circle.  This  division  of  the  road  is  the 
only  railroad  in  the  world  in  which,  throughout 
its  entire  length,  the  ties  are  laid  upon  a  shelf  of 
solid  granite.  And  so  carefully  has  the  work 


Jason  Brown  on  Mount  I,owe  Bridle  Road,  Castle  Canyon. 


6l 


of  construction  been  done  that  since  its  comple- 
tion no  accident  has  occurred  to  any  of  the  thou- 
sands of  people  who  have  ridden  over  it.  Its 
solidity  ensures  safety  and  exempts  it  from  the 
dangers  which  environ  railroads  in  the  valley. 


Magnificent       But  the  grand  views  which  are 

Views.  revealed  along  the  route  are  the 

principal   charms   of   the   Alpine 

division.    Until  Echo  Mountain  House  is  reached 


View  from  Artists'  Point,  Head  of  Grand  Canyon. 

the  view  is  somewhat  hemmed  in  by  the  near- 
ness of  the  mountain  sides,  in  Rubio  Canyon 
and  even  when  going  up  the  Great  Cable  Incline. 
From  Echo  Mountain,  however,  a  wider  expanse 
of  view  is  obtained,  and  as  the  higher  altitudes 
are  reached  the  scenery  becomes  bolder  and  the 
range  of  vision  enlarged  until  it  seems  as  though 


In  Glen  Canyon,  Five  Minutes  from  Echo  Mountain  House. 


63 

the  whole  of  Southern  California  was  spread  out 
beneath.  Distant  Catalina  Island  and  the  more 
remote  Channel  Islands,  off  Santa  Barbara,  have 
drawn  near  in  the  clear  atmosphere,  and  the 
numerous  cities  which  bestud  the  plain  appear 
close  by,  while  the  higher  peaks  of  the  Sierras 
stand  out  against  the  sky  with  startling  vivid- 
ness. The  vast  depths  of  Millard  and  Grand 
Canyons  sierrate  the  mountains  as  if  the  "plow- 
shares of  God"  had  upturned  a  path  for  winter 
torrents  through  the  solid  granite.  Nature  blends 
her  softest  and  most  bewitching  vistas  with  the 
stern  grandeur  which  pervades  the  mountain 
heights  and  the  broad  expanse  of  ocean  which 
ultimately  unites  with  the  distant  horizon. 

As  the  road  finally  swings  around  into  Grand 
Canyon,  the  character  of  the  scenery  changes 
and  the  vistas  of  valley,  plain  and  ocean  are  shut 
out.  All  hint  of  the  habitation  of  man  is  gone, 
and  one  realizes  a  sense  of  the  solitude  of  Nature. 
The  vastness  of  surrounding  mountains  and  the 
great  canyons  impresses  itself  on  the  mind  and 
one  feels  that  the  only  thing  which  connects  him 
with  the  abode  of  man  is  the  frail  wire  which 
pulsates  with  that  mysterious  power  which  is 
doing  so  much  of  man's  drudgery. 

The  terminus  of  the  track,  at  "Ye  Alpine  Tav- 
ern," is  5,000  feet  above  sea  level,  at  the  head  of 
Grand  Canyon,  and  from  that  point  the  summit 
of  Mount  Lowe  can  be  seen,  towering  eleven 
hundred  feet  above.  A  short  and  enjoyable  walk 
brings  one  to  Inspiration  Point,  from  which  the 
Observatory  and  buildings  on  Echo  Mountain  are 
seen  as  the  play  houses  of  children,  so  far  are 
they  away ;  and  the  orange  orchards  and  vineyards 


Approaching  Grand  Circular  Bridge, 
From  Head  of  Millard  Canyon,  Mount  I,owe  Railway. 


65 

and  green  grain  fields  in  the  valley  resemble  the 
variegated  patchwork  upon  the  old-time  bed- 
quilts.  To  those  who  from  here  desire  to  ascend 
to  the  summit  of  Mount  Lowe,  a  wide  and  safe 
bridle-road  offers  the  opportunity  of  an  exhilarat- 
ing ride  up  the  mountain  side,  from  whence  a 
greater  variety  of  views  are  obtained  of  distant 
mountain  ranges,  extensive  plains  and  broad  ex- 
panses of  sea. 

People  go  many  miles,  pay  large  railroad  fares 
and  .spend  much  time  to  visit  Watkins  Glen  and 
Ausable  Chasm,  New  York.  At  Mount  Lowe 
the  scenery  is  an  hundred-fold  more  grand,  the 
canyons  deeper  than  the  highest  peaks  of  hills 
which  are  dignified  with  the  name  of  mountains 
in  New  York,  and  yet  the  expense  of  reaching 
Mount  Lowe  is  but  a  fraction  of  what  is  charged 
there;  no  charge  is  made  for  guides;  the  time 
necessary  to  make  the  trip  is  much  less,  and  the 
hotel  accommodations  very  much  superior. 
*  *  *  * 

The  Circular  Bridge  builders,  as  a  rule,  build 
Bridge.  upon  a  tangent,  and  are  very  par- 

ticular to  have  the  floor  upon  a 
dead  level.  The  reason  that  these  two  condi- 
tions are  thought  necessary  is  to  avoid  too  much 
strain  upon  the  structure,  and  in  building  rail- 
roads they  are  generally  looked  upon  as  abso- 
lutely necessary.  Where  the  conditions  are  such 
as  to  admit  of  such  construction  it  is  undoubt- 
edly the  part  of  wisdom  to  follow  the  beaten  path, 
but  occasionally  such  a  course  would  either  largely 
increase  the  expense,  or,  as  in  the  construction  of 
the  Mount  Lowe  Railway,  stop  further  progress. 
Such  a  dilemma  was  thrice  presented  in  the  con- 


GENERAI,  VIEW  OF  THE   MOUNT  LOWE   RAILWAY. 
From  a  painting  by  Gardner  Symons. 


67 

struction  of  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway.  First  in 
the  numerous  bridges  along  the  lower  portion  of 
the  route,  in  Rubio  Canyon;  again  in  building 
fhe  Great  Cable  Incline,  and  lastly  on  the  Alpine 
division,  where  it  became  necessary  to  build  a 
circular  bridge  in  order  to  get  a  proper  grade. 

In  the  second  instance  the  bridges  were  built 
on  the  same  incline  as  the  balance  of  the  grade, 
in  one  instance  the  upper  end  being  one  hundred 
feet  higher  than  the  lower  in  a  length  of  200  feet. 
It  was,  however,  in  the  construction  of  the  cir- 
cular bridge  that  the  most  radical  departure  from 
the  usual  rules  of  bridge  construction  was  taken. 
At  that  point  it  was  necessary  for  the  track  to 
swing  around  a  spur  of  the  mountain,  making  a 
circle  about  400  feet,  with  a  diameter  of  150  feet 
across  and  on  one  side  a  deep  canyon  had  to  be 
bridged.  This  was  accomplished  by  the  con- 
struction of  a  circular  bridge  built  on  a  grade  of 
4l/2  per  cent.  Many  engineers  would  have  de- 
clared that  a  car  could  not  be  run  over  such  a 
structure,  but  it  was  so  carefully  and  scientifi- 
cally built  that  cars  are  run  over  it  with  as  much 
ease  and  safety  as  over  any  other  portion  of  the 
road.  Stoppages  are  often  made  upon  it  and  the 
start  is  again  made  without  any  strain  upon  either 
the  bridge  or  car. 

On  other  portions  of  the  Alpine  divisions  loops 
are  made  around  the  heads  of  great  canyons, 
and  the  track  turns  upon  itself  in  such  a  maze 
that  in  one  place  nine  different  tracks  can  be 
counted  on  the  mountain  side,  each  successively 
reaching  a  higher  altitude,  all  the  bridges  along 
the  line  conforming  to  the  curvings  and  twist- 
ings  of  the  track. 


69 

Alpine  Club  House.  Harrison  Gray  Otis, 

"Hanging  of  the  Crane."  the  able  veteran  edi- 
tor of  the  Los  An- 
geles Daily  Times,  describes  the  opening  of  the 
mountain  club  house,  called  "Ye  Alpine  Tavern," 
on  December  14,  1895,  m  the  following  manner: 

"As  was  reported  in  yesterday's  Times,  the 
recently  completed  extension  of  the  Mount  Lowe 
Railway  to  the  new  'Alpine  Tavern'  -  -  five 
miles  beyond  the  Echo  Mountain  House,  and 
5,000  feet  above  sea  level — was  made  the  occa- 
sion of  an  interesting  celebration  last  Saturday. 
A  hundred  visitors  or  more  from  Los  Angeles, 
Pasadena  and  abroad  accepted  the  hospitality  of 
the  indomitable  builder,  and  made  the  trip  over 
the  new  line.  It  was  a  happy  journey,  a  fortui- 
tous occasion.  The  day  was  all  that  is  implied 
in  the  term,  'a  December  day  in  Southern  Cali- 
fornia.' A  glorious  southern  sun  shone  straight 
clown,  flooding  the  scene  with  warmth  and  light. 
The  air  was  limpid,  thin,  bright  and  bracing, 
and  the  spirits  of  the  party  rose  as  the  electric 
chariot  bore  them  on  toward  the  summit,  under 
the  inspiration  of  a  ride,  the  unique  character 
of  which  can  be  found  nowhere  else  on  the  foot- 
stool. 

"The  car  goes  swinging  along  the  precipitous 
flank  of  the  rugged  mountain  and  the  line  is 
marked  by  astonishing  sinuosities,  startling  curves, 
bold  headlines  and  sharp  angled  rock  piles.  The 
road  appeared  dangerous  to  the  more  nervous  and 
timid,  but,  in  fact,  it  is  as  safe  as  any  railway  line 
running  on  the  level,  for  the  road  bed,  track  and 
bridges  are  built  in  a  most  thorough  and  sub- 
stantial manner,  and  were  not  made  to  'fall  down.' 


GLIMPSES  OF  MOUNT  LOWE  RAILWAY. 
Grand  Circular  Bridge  at  Upper  Right  Hand  Corner. 


71 

"The  picturesque  route  is  through  majestic  for- 
ests, growing  heavier  and  more  luxuriant  with  the 
ascent,  and  the  line  penetrates  deeper  into  the 
Sierra,  where  the  snowfall  of  winter  furnishes 
increased  moisture,  and  the  shade  of  the  close  set 
trees  shields  the  ground  and  gives  the  fertile  soil 
a  chance  to  feed  the  abundant  tree  and  plant  life 
of  this  high  altitude. 

"The  whole  journey  is  alluring  and  pictur- 
esque, not  to  say  thrilling.  On  one  side  of  the 
road  rises  the  towering  uplift  of  the  bulky  moun- 
tain, its  slopes  bright  in  verdure  and  covered 
with  heavy  timber,  masses  of  displaced  rock  and 
fallen  trees.  On  the  other  sink  immeasurable  can- 
yons, filled  with  a  dense  forest  growth,  thickets 
of  chapparal  and  beds  of  luxuriant  ferns. 

"Far  away,  seaward,  spreads  the  eye-filling 
panorama  of  the  lower  levels.  Foothill  slopes, 
big  and  little  valleys,  spreading  plains,  deep-cut 
arroyos,  clearly  defined  watercourses,  cultivated 
fields  and  gardens,  sweet  cottages  and  opulent 
homes — all  are  clear  to  the  vision  of  the  beholder 
from  this  summit  height.  Pasadena,  Los  An- 
geles and  their  environs  are  seen ;  the  blue  and 
restless  ocean  lies  beyond,  its  ceaseless  breakers 
ever  lashing  its  unyielding  shore  into  whitest 
foam. 

"The  delighted  travelers  brought  up  at  the 
Alpine  Tavern,  not  merely  because  it  is  a  hos- 
telry affording  'entertainment  for  man  and  beast,' 
but  because  the  railway  line  runs,  as  yet,  no 
further  than  that  point.  The  hotel,  built  at  the 
point  known  as  Mount  Lowe  Springs,  is  con- 
structed something  after  the  style  of  a  Swiss 
chalet,  and  is  as  attractive  as  it  is  unique.  It  is 


Carriage  Road  from  Alpine  Tavern  to  Inspiration  Point. 

set  into  the  very  ribs  of  the  mountain,  being  built 
to  suit  the  location  rather  than  after  any  stereo- 
typed plan  of  the  average  modern  architect,  who 
would  ruthlessly  fell  the  finest  forests — God's  first 
temples — for  the  sake  of  building  a  wall  'just  so.' 

"In  the  forest  all  about  the  'tavern'  are  giant 
pines  and  immense  oak  trees,  their  branches  touch- 
ing the  very  roof  of  the  building.  These  trees  are 
interspersed  with  maple,  sycamore,  mazanita,  bay, 
etc.,  and  almost  every  variety  of  fern  is  to  be 
found  in  the  the  adjacent  canyons. 

"In  addition  to  the  main  dining  hall  there  is 
a  billiard  hall  and  some  twenty  sleeping  rooms, 
neatly  finished  in  natural  woods,  and  each  heated 
by  means  of  hot  water  circulation.  These  rooms 
are  designed  especially  for  visitors  during  the 
winter  season,  when  it  is  desirable  to  be  housed 
in  a  single  building,  but  for  summer  months  sur- 


73 

rounding  the  Tavern  are  numerous  tent  cottages 
which  allow  all  who  desire  to  sleep  practically  out 
of  doors.  These  tents  are  large  and  commodious, 
and  are  equipped  with  comfortable  beds  and  all 
the  essentials  of  home.  Many  prefer  them  to  the 
rooms  of  the  Tavern. 

"The  'tavern'  is  of  an  entirely  original  design, 
the  construction  being  a  combination  of  blocks  of 
granite  and  Oregon  pine,  finished  in  the  natural 
color  of  the  wood.  The  building  is  forty  by 
eighty  feet,  and  the  main  floor  is  used  for  office 
and  dining  room  purposes,  in  which  one  hundred 
people  can  easily  be  seated.  In  this  dining  room 
there  are  five  cheerful  open  fireplaces  of  unique 
construction ;  the  main  one,  in  which  swings  the 
great  crane,  measures  twelve  feet  from  side  to 
side,  and  seven  feet  high,  with  stone  blocks  for 


A  Woodland  Dell,  Mount  I,owe  Springs. 


75 

seats  in  each  corner.  Over  the  mantle  is  the  hos- 
pitable inscription  "YE  ORNAMENT  OF  A  HOUSE  is 

YE  GUEST  WHO  DOTH  FREQUENT  IT."    On  One  side 

is  a  large  old-fashioned  brick  oven,  and  on  the 
other  side  an  opening  forming  a  buffet  of  most 
unique  construction,  where  'mystery'  and  other 
fluids  are  kept  for  the  people  of  Pasadena. 

"It  is  estimated  that  more  granite  has  been 
displaced  and  rolled  down  the  canyon  in  building 
this  last  five  miles  of  road  than  would  be  sufficient 
to  construct  a  city  the  size  of  Pasadena.  The 
road-bed  is  literally  'rock-ribbed,"  if  not  'eternal 
as  the  sun.' 

"The  completion  of  the  next  section  of  the  road 
is  expected  to  be  accomplished  at  some  time  in  the 
future.  Already  two  sections — that  is,  the  one 
to  Echo  Mountain  and  the  one  beyond — equal,  it 
is  claimed,  two  and  a  half  times  the  length  of  the 
famous  Mount  Washington  road. 

"While  the  improvements  were  going  on  at 
Echo  Mountain  the  road  beyond  was  being  stead- 
ily built,  and,  as  before  stated,  is  now  completed 
to  these  springs,  5,000  feet  above  the  sea,  and 
five  miles  beyond  Echo  Mountain.  The  redwood 
ties,  which  are  of  the  standard  size,  lie  on  solid 
rock  the  whole  distance,  making  this  the  only 
road  in  the  world,  the  builder  proudly  claims, 
which  for  so  long  a  distance  is  built  on  a  shelf  of 
granite. 

"Beyond  this  point  nearly  a  mile  of  road  has 
been  graded,  which  will  be  used  as  a  carriage 
road  for  the  present,  and  for  sleighing  when  snow 
comes.  Gentle  saddle  animals  are  provided  here, 
at  nominal  expense,  for  those  desiring  to  ride,  and 
many  do  so  in  order  to  look  off  from  Inspiration 


77 

Point,  at  the  summit  of  the  first  range,  from 
whence  can  be  seen  Echo  Mounain,  and  the  whole 
magnificent  panorama  below  and  beyond. 

"Returning  to  the  'tavern'  the  interested  com- 
pany further  inspected  the  quarters,  and  presently 
the  ceremony  of  'hanging  the  crane'  was  simply 
carried  out  by  the  chef  and  assistants,  uniformed 
in  white  aprons,  and  'bossed'  by  the  whole  party. 
The  ceremony  was  quickly  over,  and  was  greeted 


Mount  I^we,  Booking  North  from  Summit  of  First  Range. 

with  applause  and  expressions  of  delight  all  along 
the  line. 

"Then  followed  the  dinner,  which  was  a  tooth- 
some repast,  elegantly  served.  Prof,  and  Mrs. 
Lowe  occupied  the  head  of  the  table,  and  the 
guest  were  seated  at  will  about  the  board.  The 
repast  was  discussed  with  joy  and  satisfaction, 
and  thereafter  Col.  G.  Wiley  Wells,  Col.  H.  G. 


78 

Otis,  Judge  McKinley  and  Dr.  Conger  of  Pasa- 
dena, each  responded  to  calls,  and  made  little 
talks  for  the  entertainment  of  the  company. 

"Each  of  the  speakers  paid  a  handsome  tribute 
to  Prof.  Lowe  and  his  successful  work,  giving 
him  full  and  high  credit  for  his  genius,  persever- 
ance, indomitable  will,  large  faith  and  astonish- 
ing mastery  of  details.  They  dwelt  upon  the 
importance  of  the  enterprise  to  Southern  Cali- 
fornia, and  predicted  great  results  to  flow  from 
it  in  the  years  to  come.  The  boldness  and  energy 
of  the  builder  in  undertaking,  single-handed  and 
alone,  an  enterprise  vast  enough  to  engage  the 
efforts  of  a  large  corporation  were  dwelt  upon  by 
more  than  one  of  the  speakers,  and  these  refer- 
ences elicited  the  plaudits  of  the  appreciative 
company. 

"Prof.  Lowe  responded,  modestly  telling  of 
his  work  as  a  practical  modern  man  of  business, 
who  had  simply  undertaken  the  very  feasible  task 
of  building  a  mountain  railway  to  fit  a  mountain 
as  he  had  found  it — a  work  which  required  a 
very  different  sort  of  talent  from  that  employed 
by  the  great  artist  to  whom  reference  had  been 
made  in  one  of  the  toasts.  The  possibilities  for 
sleighing,  and  the  unequaled  views  from  Inspira- 
tion Point  were  touched  upon — a  striking  view 
that  may  be  had  from  a  small  level  spot  near  the 
tavern,  not  much  bigger  than  an  army  tent  would 
cover.  It  is  certainly  a  view  such  as  can  be  had 
from  no  other  spot  on  the  wide  globe. 

"The  host's  modest  and  candid  speech  was 
listened  to  with  keen  interest,  and  at  its  close  the 
speaker  was  warmly  applauded. 

"This   ended   the  high   revelry,   and   then   the 


79 


revelers  took  the  train  for  the  lower  regions,  but 
later  got  to  their  respective  homes  all  right,  after 
a  most  enjoyable  day,  long  to  be  remembered." 


The  Benefits  of  The    higher    one    climbs 

Mountain  Climbing,     in  the  mountains  the  less 

becomes   the   atmospheric 

pressure  upon  him,  and  lungs,  heart  and  nerves 
all  feel  the  reduction  of  the  pressure.  All  expe- 
rience new  sensations  of  freedom  and  vigor,  ac- 
tivity and  exuberance,  felt  only  on  the  levels  in 
times  of  excitement  or  stimulation.  The  lungs 
expand  and  the  breathing  is  more  profound ;  the 
heart  thereupon  beats  fuller  and  more  vigorous- 
ly, while  the  subtle  oxygen,  no  longer  stealing 
into  the  body  in  a  half-afraid,  surreptitious  way, 
but  taking  fuller  possession  at  each  more  vigorous 
heart-beat,  healthfully  stimulates  the  nerves  and 
the  brain.  Renewed  activity  is  the  result,  with 
the  vim,  verve,  joy  and  happiness  that  are  nat- 
ural concomitants  of  healthful  physical  conditions. 

So  mentally  and  spiritually.  The  higher  we 
go,  the  less  atmospheric  pressure  is  there  upon  us 

We  think  easier  and  to  better  advantage,  and 
our  hearts  respond  more  readily  to  the  grand, 
the  good,  the  beautiful  and  the  sublime.  The 
subtlety  of  the  mental  and  spiritual  stimulus  that 
comes  into  the  life  when  we  are  above  the  fogs 
and  the  clouds,  breathing  deeply  a  pure  atmos- 
phere, is  one  of  its  chief  charms.  We  feel  the 
stimulus  or  respond  to  it  and  wonder  how  and 
whence  it  came.  A  quickened  mental  and  spir- 
itual life  is  the  result.  Thoughts  whose  exist- 
ence were  never  before  dreamed  of  come  and  go 


8i 

with  rapidity,  and  we  experience  all  the  thrilling 
joy  of  mental  and  spiritual  discovery. 

Not  only  are  spiritual,  mental  and  physical 
power  gained  on  the  mountains,  but  in  them  is 
contained  a  marvelously  extended  store  of  ma- 
terial for  the  building  up  of  the  artistic  and 
aesthetic  sides  of  men.  Here  artist,  poet,  orator 
may  gain  a  stock  of  unforgettable  memories  and 
provide  themselves  with  gallery  after  gallery  of 
perfect  pictures ;  pictures  of  beauty,  sublimity, 
majesty  and  grandeur. 

Just  think  for  a  moment  of  the  canvases  de- 
picting mountains.  Some  of  the  greatest  artists 
of  the  world  have  built  up  their  reputations 
through  their  mountain  pictures.  Three  of  our 
greatest  artists  owe  their  success  to  mountain 
pictures.  Bierstadt,  Moran  and  Hill  are  alike 
mountain  lovers  and  worshippers. 

Then  who  can  overlook  the  place  mountains  have 
in  the  poetry  of  all  peoples,  of  all  times?  And  to 
merely  recount  the  exquisite  and  strong,  the  beau- 
tiful and  the  sublime  passages  in  literature,  of 
which  mountains  are  the  theme,  would  fill  many 
hundreds  of  volumes.  Their  heights  and  their  un- 
attainableness,  and  yet  the  luring  of  us  onward 
and  upward.  The  snow-capped  peaks,  the  em- 
blems of  eternal  purity.  The  dangerous  preci- 
pices. The  shady  recesses.  The  thrilling  can- 
yons. The  cooling  fountains.  The  secret  stores 
of  waters  they  contain.  The  minerals  they  hide. 
The  towering  rocks  looking  down  upon  all  below. 
The  trees  they  nourish.  The  flowers  they  cherish. 
The  valleys  they  make  and  sustain.  The  clouds 
they  arrest  and  make  contributors  to  the  common 
good.  The  shields  they  are  to  the  winds. 


83 

Health  Gained  Physicians  are  now  recog- 

in  the  Mountains,  nizing  more  than  ever  be- 
fore the  great  value  of  con- 
ditions that  exist  in  the  mountains  for  the  restor- 
ation of  invalids  to  health.  Hence  year  by  year 
thousands  of  people  leave  the  stern  winters  of  the 
East,  with  their  fierce  snow-storms,  blizzards, 
winds  and  tornadoes,  to  enjoy  the  equable,  de- 
licious climate  of  our  sun-kissed  land  of  the 
South,  and  nowhere  can  these  benign  influences 
be  enjoyed  as  well  as  on  the  various  elevations 
of  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway.  Those  who  desire 
a  moderate  altitude  find  it  at  Echo  Mountain. 
3,500  feet  above  the  sea,  while  to  those  who 
need  the  rarer  atmosphere  of  the  more  elevated 
points,  Alpine  Tavern,  among  the  pines,  is  an 
ideal  spot.  It  is  no  mere  formal  statement  that 
the  hotels  at  these  two  points  are  first-class  in 
every  respect.  In  all  essentials  no  modern  hotel 
in  the  greatest  cities  of  the  continent  surpasses 
them.  The  health  conditions,  too,  are  simply 
perfect.  Pure  water  from  uncontaminated 
sources, — springs  that  bubble  up  through  the 
disintegrated  granite  and  give  a  naturally-filtered 
water  free  from  all  mineral  and  organic  matter; 
pure  air,  changing  twice  a  day  in  gently  flowing 
currents,  which  alternate  from  ocean  and  desert, 
both  ideal  purifiers  of  the  atmosphere;  balsamic 
and  health-giving  odors  from  pines,  firs,  spruces 
and  other  mountainous  trees  and  plants ;  absolute 
freedom  from  all  malarial  or  other  injurious  and 
noxious  influences  ;  the  quietude  of  gentle  nature ; 
these  are  some  of  the  conditions  of  distinct  thera- 
peutic value  which  minister  to  the  physical  and 
mental  well-being  of  those  who  dwell  in  these 
favored  spots. 


85 

A  Mountain  Mountain  canyons  are  al- 

Canyon  in  Winter,  ways  beautiful.  No  mat- 
ter how  rugged  the  scen- 
ery is,  Dame  Nature  is  such  a  finished  artist  that 
she  paints  the  most  huge  rocks,  or  the  most 
gnarled  and  twisted  trees,  so  that  all  the  human 
painter  can  do  in  order  to  become  famous  is  to 
properly  interpret  and  place  on  canvas  the  touches 
which  nature  has  imprinted  on  the  landscape. 
At  best  man  is  only  a  copyist ;  all  his  "creations" 
and  "interpretations"  are  suggested  to  him  by 
some  manifestation  of  the  Great  Creator  painted 
or  impressed  on  some  canvas  hung  on  the  moun- 
tain sides,  or  in  the  valley,  or  on  the  ever  restless 
waves  of  the  sea.  It  is  in  the  solitude  of  the 
mountains  where  the  finest  inspirations  for  the 
artists  are  to  be  found.  Here  he  is  alone  with 
nature.  Here  the  grandest  exhibitions  of  the 
titanic  power  of  the  Creator  are  manifest,  toned 
and  modified  by  the  beautiful  tints  of  flowers  and 
ferns. 

In  this  climate  the  summer  is  a  season  of  rest 
for  all  natural  vegetation,  except  in  the  moun- 
tains. Only  where  man  has  reversed  the  course 
of  the  seasons  do  we  find  growth  and  develop- 
ment. But  even  then  the  canyons  possess  won- 
derful beauty,  although  the  songs  of  their  brooks 
are  sung  in  minor  tones.  As  compared  with  the 
brown  and  parched  valleys  their  cool  retreats  are 
refreshing.  In  winter,  however,  they  possess 
their  greatest  charm.  Then  nature  is  busily  at 
work.  The  rock  gives  out  bounteous  streams  of 
water,  which  leap  down  their  mossy  sides,  sing- 
ing as  they  go  joyful  anthems  and  imparting  to 
every  kind  of  vegetation  the  moisture  which 


87 

gives  them  renewed  life.  Where  the  landscape 
has  been  brown  and  bare  comes  the  rich  green  of 
a  new  life,  the  very  rocks  putting  on  a  richer 
coloring  by  absorbing  their  quota  of  the  vivify- 
ing fluid. 

Many  people  climb  to  the  summits  in  order  to 
get  views  of  the  canyons,  imagining  that  from 
such  heights  can  be  found  the  best  vistas  of  their 
caverns.  They  thereby  get  a  beautiful  glimpse 
of  the  dark  recesses  below ;  but  one  must  see  the 
canyons  from  their  depths  in  order  to  fully  grasp 
their  beauty  and  grandeur.  We  now  get  close 
to  nature,  and  she  talks  to  us  in  a  language 
which  all  can  interpret,  and  what  glimpses  of 
the  outer  world  we  see  are  toned  and  made  mel- 
low by  the  setting  of  rocks  and  forests  which  are 
blended  by  the  variegated  colors  of  brilliant  green 
and  the  "sere  and  yellow  leaf"  of  those  trees 
which  cannot  overcome  their  hereditary  nature 
and  sleep  while  all  other  vegetation  is  bursting 
into  new  life. 

Professor  Lowe,  having  the  eye  of  a  true  ar- 
tist, laid  out  bridle  paths,  built  stairways  and 
walks,  and,  without  disturbing  nature,  made  ac- 
cess to  the  canyons  along  the  route  of  the  Mount 
Lowe  Railway  easy  and  pleasant,  either  on  foot 
or  on  saddle  animals.  One  can  spend  days  and 
weeks  with  pleasure  and  profit  in  exploring  these 
recesses,  with  the  advantage  of  having  a  home  at 
night  with  all  the  conveniences  of  urban  life,  at 
no  greater  cost  than  when  stopping  at  hotels  in 
the  valley.  Visitors  should  therefore  come  pre- 
pared to  prolong  their  stay  until  they  have  leisure- 
ly roamed  over  all  the  paths  and  explored  the 
canyons  which  constitute  the  itinerary  of  the 


Mount  Lowe  Railway,  and  not  be  satisfied  with 
a  cursory  glance  at  the  wealth  of  scenery  which 
is  so  easy  of  access,  especially  when  its  hotel  ac- 
commodations are  superior  to  all  others  in  South- 
ern California  and  at  no  greater  cost  than  in  the 
valley. 


*  *  * 


The  Flora  of     The  Sierra  Madre  are  not  corn- 
Mount  Lowe,  posed  of  dry,  barren  earth  heaps, 
but,    true    to    their    name,     are 
Mother  Mountains,  fostering  and  protecting  life's 


Acorns  Grown  Upon  the  Summit  of  Mount  I,ovie. 
6100  Feet  Above  Sea  Level. 

children.  A  refuge  for  all,  for  primitive  man  of 
past  times,  who  was  forced  to  depend  upon  them 
for  water  and  food,  and  for  the  civilized  man  of 


89 

to-day,  seeking  health  and  enjoyment  in  their 
oxygenated  atmosphere  and  restful  solitudes. 

For  the  lowest  as  well  as  the  highest  of  organ- 
izations the  mountains  are  a  grateful  retreat. 
The  simple  amoeba,  whose  existence  is  undoubted- 
ly the  oldest  of  all  times,  finds  living  here  impos- 
sible, for  in  water  it  must  live  and  move  and  in 
desert  wastes  it  must  perish. 

The  stately  yuccas — the  candlesticks  of  our 
Lord — their  white  fragrant  blossoms  borne  on 
the  straight  stalks,  at  a  distance  looking  like  so 
many  white  stakes  set  by  surveyors,  grow  only 
on  the  mountains  and  foothills ;  while  down  in 
the  deep  canyon  streams  the  lowest  of  plants, 
the  algae,  abound. 

The  nearer  one  approaches  to  the  mountains 
the  more  abundant  are  the  signs  of  life,  the  more 
prolific  is  nature,  the  more  do  the  flowers  mul- 
tiply ;  until  when  the  foothills  are  reached  one 
sees  them  to  be  literally  covered  with  blossoms. 

The  ferns  are  already  at  the  mountains,  while 
the  flowering  plants  all  seem  to  be  on  their  way 
thither,  as  emigrants  from  the  dry  valley,  leav- 
ing but  few  by  the  roadside,  stragglers  loitering 
on  the  montain  march,  or  perhaps  not  stragglers, 
but  simply  doubters,  hesitating  whether  to  still 
proceed  to  where  the  water  ever  flows,  or  whether 
to  wait  and  see  what  further  wonders  man  can 
accomplish  with  his  irrigation. 

From  the  fertile,  semi-tropical  fields  of  Alta- 
dena,  aglow  with  golden  poppies,  stretching  up  in 
the  mountains  to  the  rocky  summit  of  Mount 
Lowe,  where  saxifrage  and  penstemons,  ferns 
and  nightshade  harmoniously  cleave  to  the  rocks 
and  strive  to  gain  a  living  in  summer  time  against 


Garden  of  the  Gods,  showing  Two  Sections,  with  portion  of 
Circular  Bridge,  Mount  I<owe. 


91 

altitude  and  dryness  only  to  be  buried  in  snow  in 
the  window  months,  the  line  of  march  extends. 

Shrubs  and  flowers  in  profusion  vie  with  each 
other  as  to  which  will  brighten  the  landscape  the 
more.  The  California  lilac  of  the  lower  altitudes 
lays  downs  its  masses  of  purple  blue  color,  the 
manzanita  thickets  of  the  heights  send  out  their 
heavy  white  fragrant  blossoms,  a  pleasing  con- 
trast to  their  rich  red  gnarled  stems,  while  the 
brilliant  gilias,  the  showy  mariposa  lilies,  the  vari- 
ous primroses,  the  mocking  monkey  face  flow- 
ers— the  mimuli,  make  the  trails  and  bridle  roads 
resplendent.  The  spotted  tiger  lilies  look  down 
upon  the  water  flowing  in  the  canyons,  the  woolly 
blue-curls — the  trichostema,  relieves  the  dull 
browns  of  the  chapparral  and  the  baby  blue  eyes, 
the  nemophila,  hugs  closely  the  mountain  sides. 

The  abundant  phacelia  whitlavia  nods  in  its 
blue  bells  over  the  bank's  edge,  while  its  relative, 
the  white  phacelia,  creeps  over  the  rocks  higher 
up.  Downy  yellow  violets — wild  pansies  the  chil- 
dren call  them,  so  much  larger  are  they  than  the 
Eastern  violets — grow  on  the  rich  moist  earth 
by  the  mountain  springs. 

Over  the  scrub  oaks  the  yellow  and  white  hon- 
eysuckle winds,  while  the  clematis  drapes  other 
thickets  with  its  graceful  festoons  of  white  blos- 
soms in  spring,  leaving  for  the  fall  the  funny 
seed  balls  still  clinging  to  the  vine. 

Later  in  the  year  the  wild  fuchias  and  wild 
astors  come  unexpectedly  forth  when  valley 
flowers  have  long  since  given  up  blooming,  keep- 
ing up  the  reputation  of  the  mountains  for  hav- 
ing flowers  at  all  times  and  at  all  seasons. 
*  *  *  * 


Observation  Car  on  Grand  Circular  Bridge  en  route  for  Alpine  Tavern. 


93 


The  Coast  Islands 
From  Mount  Lowe. 


The  coast  line  of  the  Pa- 
cific ocean,  as  seen  from 
Mount  Lowe  is  peculiarly 
On  a  clear  day  many  islands  can  be  seen 
from  the  summit,  where  the  eye  can  scan  a  dis- 
tance of  nearly  three  hundred  miles  along  the 


fine. 


I,og  Cabin,  Mount  I,owe  Springs. 

shore.  Some  of  the  islands  rise  from  the  surface 
of  the  water  only  a  few  hundred  feet,  their  sur- 
faces being  high  table  lands,  which  can  be  culti- 
vated; others  are  mountains,  the  highest  peaks 


94 

towering  3,000  feet  high,  while  others  are  appar- 
ently the  rocky  tops  of  submerged  mountains. 

The  position  of  Mount  Lowe  is  such  that  with 
one  sweep  of  the  eye  they  will  pass  in  review  on 
a  clear  day  (which  in  this  region  is  the  normal 
condition  of  the  atmosphere),  giving  a  panorama 
of  ocean,  island,  mountain  and  canyon  scenery 
which  cannot  be  equaled  on  the  globe. 

Looking  from  The  San  Gabriel  Valley  and 

Mount  Lowe  the  mesa  lands  lying  between 

Over  the   Valley,     the   Mission   Hills   and  the 

ocean    are    choice    bits    of 

God's  creation,  as  are  also  the  interior  valleys 
which  radiate  from  them. 

This  stretch  of  fertile  land,  all  of  which  can 
be  seen  from  some  point  of  view  on  Mount  Lowe, 
already  contains  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
people,  and  yet  only  a  small  portion  of  the  soil 
is  cultivated.  It  is  capable  of  sustaining  a  popu- 
lation of  several  million  from  the  products  of  the 
soil  alone,  not  to  say  anything  of  its  superior 
location  for  manufacturing  and  commerce.  Prob- 
ably before  the  new  century  is  half  a  decade  old 
more  than  a  million  people  will  have  their  homes 
here. 

The  portion  of  this  region  lying  immediately 
at  the  foot  of  Mount  Lowe  is  the  most  thickly 
populated  section  of  Southern  California.  Direct- 
ly underneath,  within  a  few  miles  of  its  base,  is 
the  beautiful  city  of  Pasadena,  with  its  sixteen 
thousand  people,  and  just  beyond  the  Mission 
Hills,  the  metropolis  of  the  southwest,  Los  An- 
geles, is  located,  with  one  hundred  and  forty  thou- 
sand population.  These  two  cities  show  a  greater 


96 

annual  per  cent,  of  development  than  can  be 
found  in  any  other  portion  of  the  United  States. 
The  upper  or  western  portion  of  the  San  Gabriel 
valley  is  cut  up  into  fruit  farms,  which  look  from 
the  mountains  like  well  kept  gardens,  and  the 
whole  scene  is  one  of  busy  activity.  These  cities, 
towns,  orchards  and  farms  give  added  charms  to 
the  landscape. 

Through  a  good  opera  glass  or  a  field  glass  the 
celebrated  avenues  of  Baldwin's  Ranch,  the  Mis- 
sion San  Gabriel,  the  Convent  at  Ramona,  a 
portion  of  the  Industrial  School  at  Whittier. 
many  of  the  public  buildings  of  Los  Angeles,  and 
other  objects  of  interest  may  be  seen.  A  score 
or  more  of  cities,  towns  and  villages  are  clearly 
discernible,  and  the  course  of  their  streets  well 
outlined.  The  Puente  Hills,  the  Mission  Hills, 
the  San  Rafael  Hills  and  their  surrounding  moun- 
tain heights,  with  the  peaks  of  Santiago,  San 
Antonio,  San  Bernardino,  San  Gorgonio,  San  Ja- 
cinto,  Santa  Monica,  Santa  Inez  and  San  Fernan- 
do are  all  in  sight,  and  beyond  these  fertile  val- 
leys and  highlands  can  be  seen  the  peaceful  wa- 
ters of  the  Pacific  sparkling  and  glimmering  in 
the  warm  sunshine,  studded  here  and  there  with 
some  of  the  most  beautiful  islands  in  the  world, 
the  headlands  of  Santa  Catalina  standing  out  in 
a  clear  day  like  the  bold  cliffs  of  Gibraltar,  and 
San  Clemente,  St.  Nicholas,  Santa  Rosa,  San 
Miguel,  Ancapa,  and  Santa  Barbara  bedecking 
the  ocean  like  the  isles  of  the  Grecian  Archipelago. 

%     ^     Jj;     >jc 

From  Alpine  Snow  On  several  New  Year's 
to  Semi-Tropical  Sea.  Days  I  have  made  this 

wonderful  and  memor- 
able trip.     The  climatic  conditions  are  so  pecu- 


liar  that  within  three  hours'  time  of  enjoying  a 
swim  in  the  warm  waters  of  the  Pacific  one  may 
be  snowballing  his  friends,  sleighriding  or  to- 
bogganing on  the  heights  of  Mount  Lowe.  The 
accompanying  pictures  give  some  faint  idea  of 
the  unrivaled  charm  of  this  unique  trip.  Some- 
times I  have  started  at  the  snow  in  the  mountains. 
but  on  New  Year's  Day,  1897,  I  first  took  a  swim 
in  the  Pacific  Ocean  at  Long  Beach.  This,  "the 
Atlantic  City  of  the  West,"  is  twenty-one  miles 
southeast  of  Los  Angeles,  and  the  beach  is  one 
of  the  finest  in  the  world.  It  has  a  gentle  slope, 
is  of  firm  sand,  and  is  equally  as  good  for  horse- 
back riding  and  driving  as  for  bathing.  Its  great 
length  of  solid  sand  is  what  suggested  the  name, 
hence  it  is  an  ideal  spot  for  those  who  love  the 
ocean  and  the  sands.  Here,  with  several  friends. 
I  reveled  in  the  surf  and  beyond,  and  then  re- 
turned to  the  hotel  with  an  appetite  vigorous  and 
healthy.  The  cravings  of  hunger  satiated,  the 
train  whirled  me  back  towards  the  mountains. 
Now  the  electric  cars  of  the  Pacific  Electric  Rail- 
way, over  a  broad-gauge  track,  surpasss  even  the 
steam  cars  in  their  speed  and  easiness  of  motion. 
The  green  lawns  of  Long  Beach  were  left  behind, 
that  the  eye  might  feast  upon  the  rich  green  of 
the  alfalfa  fields  and  sugar  beet  ranches.  The 
old  Dominguez  Ranch  was  passed,  the  mesa  upon 
which  the  last  fight  with  the  Mexicans  took  place 
before  California  was  secured  to  the  United 
States,  and  the  interesting  gardens  of  the  indus- 
trious "heathen  Chinee."  Never  for  a  moment 
were  we  out  of  sight  of  the  majestic  Sierra 
Madre  Range,  while  hoary  San  Antonio  (so  in- 
appropriately and  disrespectfully  called  "Old 


Jfel 


Baldy,"  by  the  uncouth  and  irreverent),  lifted  his 
sentinel  head  in  watchfulness  over  the  ever-ver- 
dant and  glorious  San  Gabriel  Valley.  To  the 
right  and  somewhat  to  the  rear  was  the  cloud 
banner  mountain  of  Southern  California,  Mt. 
Santiago,  while  further  away  to  the  east  were 
the  giant  peaks  of  San  Bernardino,  San  Gorgonio 
and  San  Jacinto. 

On  reaching  Los  Angeles  change  was  made 
to  the  Pasadena  cars  and  a  thirty  minutes' 
ride  conveyed  me  to  the  flower-embowered 
streets  and  avenues  of  Pasadena,  where  a  score 
of  thousands  of  citizens  and  visitors  were  assem- 
bled to  enjoy  the  annual  Tournament  of  Roses. 
This  great  mid-winter  festival  fully  illustrates  the 
climatic  felicities  of  this  God-blessed  region.  It 
is  a  midsummer  fete,  where,  generally,  flowers 
are  lavishly  expended  in  a  wealth  of  floral  dec- 
orations that  to  an  eastern  mind  seems  incredible. 
Floats,  carriages,  tally-hos,  bicycles,  horses  and 
burros,  decorated  with  choicest  flowers,  pass  in 
procession  through  the  streets  and  avenues, 
cheered  by  enthusiastic  visitors.  After  reveling 
in  the  scene,  the  electric  cars  whirled  myself,  a 
solitary  unit  among  several  hundreds  of  people, 
to  the  heights  of  Echo  Mountain  and  Alpine 
Tavern.  Here,  taking  horse,  and  accompanied 
by  a  distinguished  medical  professor  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Minnesota,  we  were  soon  on  the  north 
slopes  of  Mount  Lowe,  where  scores  of  patches 
of  snow  were  seen.  In  the  mid-winter  air  we 
rode  without  any  inconvenience  from  cold,  even 
light  overcoats  being  unnecessary.  Returning  to 
Echo  Mountain,  we  enjoyed  there  a  concert,  and 
then  the  doctor  and  I  returned  to  Pasadena  and 
Los  Angeles,  respectively,  he  delighted  with  the 


novelty  of  his  trip,  and  I  satisfied  that  in  no  other 
country   in   the   world   can   such   a   three-hours' 
New   Year's   Day   trip   be   enjoyed   than   in   our 
"Land  of  the  Sun  Down  Sea/' 
*  *  *  * 

From  the  Although  the    trip    so 

Mountains  to  the  Sea.     briefly  described  above 

was    taken    on     New 

Years'  Day  it  must  not  be  thought  that  it  is  a  trip 
specially  confined  to  that  day.  Snow  generally 
is  to  be  found  on  the  north  slopes  of  Mount 
Lowe  from  the  end  of  November  (after  the  first 
rains)  until  the  middle  of  May,  so  that  thou- 
sands of  visitors  may  enjoy  this  unique  trip. 
Stopping  over  night  at  Alpine  Tavern,  one  rnay 
revel  in  the  snow  in  the  morning  and  be  photo- 
graphed at  an  elevation  of  5,000  feet,  taking  a 
sleigh-ride  to  Inspiration  Point,  where  he  may 
stand  or  sit  and  look  over  the  blossom  covered 
orange  and  lemon  groves  and  flower  gardens  of 
Pasadena.  In  three-quarters  of  an  hour  he  may 
be  driven  in  a  carriage  near  those  very  orchards 
and  gardens,  where  snow  has  fallen  but  twice  in 
eighteen  years.  After  dinner,  a  little  over  another 
hour's  ride  brings  him  to  the  shore  of  the  semi- 
tropical  Pacific,  and  here  he  may  enjoy  a  swim, 
or,  if  he  prefers,  stand  on  the  beach  and  watch  a 
hundred  people  sporting  in  the  warm  breakers. 
This  is  no  unusual  experience  for  the  delectation 
not  only  of  those  who  are  robust  and  strong,  but 
even  the  delicate  may,  with  perfect  impunity,  make 
such  a  trip,  and  thus  be  enabled  to  write  to  East- 
ern friends,  shivering  in  the  rigorous  cold  of  an 
Alpine  winter,  of  the  pleasures  of  this  almost  un- 
believable three  hours'  journey  "from  the  moun- 
tains to  the  sea." 


Outlook  from  one  of  the  Bedroom  Windows,  Alpine  Tavern, 
Mount  I,owe,  March,  1896. 


TO4 


DAWN  ON 
MOUNT  LOWE. 

Looking  southward  to  the  sunlamls, 

On  the  ocean's  ebb  and  flow, 
Keeping  watch  o'er  Echo  Mountain, 

Dwells  the  spirit  of  Mount  Lowe — 
In  the  glowing  light  of  noonday, 

In  the  midnight  calm  and  lone, 
Gazing  outward  from  the  summit 

Like  a  ruler  from  his  throne. 

At  his  feet  sits  Pasadena, 

Framed  with  fields  of  fruit  and  grain 
Where  the  valley  of  San  Gabriel 

Slopes  in  beauty  to  the  main — 
Pasadena,  decked  with  roses 

And  with  gems  of  gold  and  green, 
Resting  on  the  landscape's  forehead 

Like  a  crown  upon  a  queen. 

And  the  "City  of  the  Angels," 

On  her  hills  of  bronze  and  gold, 
Stands  amidst  her  groves  of  olives 

Like  Jerusalem  of  old; 
With  the  purple  Sierra  Madres 

Smiling  downward  from  the  dawn, 
As  Mount  Hermon  smiled  on  Zion, 

In  the  ages  that  are  gone. 

West  and  south  the  blue  Pacific, 

Hemmed  with  surf  and  fringed  with  spray, 
Bathes  in  floods  of  molten  silver 

Headland,  island,  beach  and  bay ; 
East  and  north  the  inland  deserts, 

With  their  ever  shifting  sands — 
More  unstable  than  the  waters — 

Fade  in  distant  mountain  lands. 


105 

Oh !  that  vision  of  the  sunlands 

Where  the  skies  are  ever  fair, 
And  the  Autumn  woos  the  Winter 

With  young  rosebuds  in  her  hair — 
Where  the  orange  blooms  forever 

And  its  leaf  is  never  sere, 
And  the  mocking  bird  is  singing 

To  his  mate  the  livelong  year. 

It  has  haunted  me  in  slumber, 

It  has  gleamed  and  throbbed  again 
In  my  solitary  musings, 

And  in  crowded  throngs  of  men ; 
Like  a  vanished  revelation 

Floats  the  memory  back  to  me 
Of  that  dawn  upon  the  mountain 

'Twixt  the  desert  and  the  sea. 


JAMES  G.  CLARK. 


Mount  San  Antonio,  July  4,  1895, 
As  Seen  from  Mount  I<owe. 


io6 

Tri-Crested  No   photograph    or 

Summit  of  Mount  Lowe,     engraving  can  give 

any  adequate  con- 
ception of  the  grand  proportions  of  this  majestic 
mountain.  Seen  from  Los  Angeles,  Pasadena, 
or  the  intermediate  or  surrounding  points,  its 
three  crests  are  clearly  outlined  against  the  sky. 
and  it  stands — the  proud  monarch  of  the  Sierra 
Madre  range — centrally  located  and  immediately 
overlooking  Pasadena  and  the  head  of  the  San 
Gabriel  Valley.  The  bridle  road  of  the  "Mount 
Lowe  Eight"  reaches  its  topmost  crest,  where 
there  are  delightful  mountain  parks  surrounded 
by  live  oaks,  pines,  firs,  sycamore  and  other  trees. 
The  climatic  and  atmospheric  advantages  of 
this  site  for  astronomical  and  meteorological 
observations  have  been  enthusiastically  expatiated 
upon  by  such  scientific  experts  as  President  Eliot 
and  Prof.  Pickering  of  Harvard,  Profs.  Barnard 
and  Bnrnham  of  the  Lick  Observatory,  Prof. 
Kent  of  Chicago  and  many  others.  No  more 
suitable  site  could  be  selected  in  the  whole  domain 
of  the  American  continent. 

A  Forest  of  Pines.     Along  the  Alpine  division 
the   cars   pass   through   a 

forest  of  giant  pines,  which  covers  all  the  north- 
ern slopes  of  the  Sierra  Madre.  The  symmetri- 
cal branches  weave  a  network  against  the  back- 
ground of  blue  sky.  These  hardy  trees  grasp 
the  granite  rocks  with  their  gnarled  roots  and 
send  a  lacework  of  delicate  fibres  down  the  almost 
imperceptible  fissures  for  nourishment.  Tht 
roots  of  pines  and  oaks  have  penetrated  the  cre- 
vices to  a  depth  of  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  below 
the  surface. 


107 

The  Name.  The  "naming"  of  Mount  Lowe 
was  quite  an  interesting  ceremony. 
A  large  party  of  distinguished  citizens  of  Los 
Angeles  and  Pasadena  had  ridden  to  the  summit 
to  see  the  progress  made  in  the  construction  of 
the  railway  and  bridle-roads,  and  an  article  writ- 
ten at  the  time  by  one  member  of  the  party  and 
published  in  an  Eastern  paper,  the  Anglaise 
County  (Ohio)  Republican,  says: 

"While  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  beauties  and 
grandeur  on  this  magnificent  elevation  more  than 
6,000  feet  above  the  sea,  some  one  inquired  the 
name  of  this  grand  and  lofty  mountain,  and  then 
it  was  discovered  that  until  this  time  this  giant 
peak,  the  monarch  of  the  Sierra  Madre,  was  un- 
named. One  of  the  party  suggested  that  whereas 
Professor  T.  S.  C.  Lowe,  the  great  scientist,  had 
first  ridden  to  the  top,  had  made  the  first  trip 
to  its  lofty  summit,  was  the  first  man  to  have 
planted  the  stars  and  stripes  on  its  highest  point, 
and  was  the  first  man  to  conceive  the  project 
of  reaching  its  dizzy  height  with  a  railroad,  and 
with  courage  and  means  to  put  such  a  project 
into  execution,  as  was  now  being  done,  no  more 
fit  and  appropriate  name  could  be  given  this 
mountain  than  the  name  of  'Mount  Lowe.'  The 
motion  to  so  name  it  was  put  and  carried  without 
a  dissenting  vote,  and  so,  there  above  the  clouds, 
it  was  named  ;  and  it  will  continue  to  be  so  named 
when  every  one  of  the  party  present  at  the  chris- 
tening shall  have  been  laid  away  in  Mother  Earth  ; 
and  generations  yet  unborn  shall  trace  its  rugged 
outlines  on  their  physical  geographies  and  call  it 
Mount  Lowe." 


'  ^— •'  J-*    ' 

Rounding  Sunset  Point,  Mount  I<owe  Railway. 


How  to  see  There  are  various  ways  of 
Mount  Lowe,  "doing-"  Mount  Lowe,  but 
many  people  do  not  give  them- 
selves time  enough  to  fully  enjoy  the  various  at- 
tractions which  are  to  be  found  along  the  route. 
To  people  of  leisure  who  desire  to  thoroughly 
explore  the  canyons,  enjoy  the  scenery  in  all  its 
varied  manifestations,  many  days  can  be  profit- 
ably and  most  pleasantly  passed,  the  varied 
scenery  furnishing  new  enjoyment  every  day. 
Those  whose  time  is  limited  should  come  pre- 
pared to  stop  at  least  twenty-four  hours.  By 
taking  an  early  train  Echo  Mountain  is  reached 
in  time  to  take  a  ride  over  the  Alpine  division, 
and  also  to  the  summit  of  Mount  Lowe,  going 
over  the  bridle  roads  from  Alpine  Tavern  on  sad- 
dle animals.  The  afternoon  can  be  profitably 
spent  in  exploring  the  many  canyons  of  the 
"Mount  Lowe  Eight,"  and  viewing  the  sunset 
from  Echo  Mountain. 

In  the  evening-  there  can  be  witnessed  the 
operation  of  the  great  World's  Fair  Searchlight 
and  telescopic  views  of  the  Moon  and  the  Planets, 
the  great  Milky-way,  with  its  millions  of  Suns  as 
large  as  our  own ;  Saturn,  with  its  beautiful  rings  ; 
Jupiter,  with  its  grand  belts  and  Moons,  and 
many  other  celestial  objects. 

The  Lick  Observatory  at  Mount  Hamilton  is 
reached  by  a  tedious  round  trip  by  stage  of  54 
miles  without  a  chance  to  stop  over  night  at  the 
observatory.  After  viewing  the  splendid  tele- 
scopic views  from  Lowe  Observatory,  all  are  in- 
vited to  inspect  the  Incline  machinery,  elsewhere 
described. 


Observation  Car,  Descending  from  Grand  Circular  Bridge, 
Mount  I<owe. 


Summer  on  The  Sierra  Madre  Range  has 
Mount  Lowe,  long  been  regarded  as  the  most 
beautiful  location  in  which 
to  escape  from  the  heat  of  midsummer,  or  to 
make  the  change  of  climate  and  scenery.  Here- 
tofore the  seashore  has  been  more  largely  pat- 
ronized on  account  of  its  ease  of  access,  but 
many  hundreds  of  people  have  annually  made 
pilgrimages  to  remote  mountain  resorts  because 
of  the  pure  air  and  healthful  surroundings  there 
to  be  found. 

The  building  of  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway  into 
the  very  heart  of  the  mountains,  and  the  erection 
of  a  modern  hotel  at  Alpine  has  drawn  the  atten- 
tion of  the  people  to  these  attractions,  and  the 
trend  of  travel  is  now  turned  mountainward. 
Accommodations  at  the  Tavern  are  not  surpassed 
by  any  on  the  Coast,  and  the  liberal  policy  of  the 
company  to  those  who  desire  to  pass  the  summer 
here  has  so  greatly  reduced  the  expense  of  living 
that  it  costs  no  more,  railway  fares  included,  than 
at  the  seashore,  and  far  less  than  by  traveling 
long  distances  where  they  can  find  nothing  to 
compare  with  this  resort. 

Other  mountain  resorts  are  hard  to  attain,  and 
the  cost  in  money,  time  and  exertion  places  them 
beyond  the  re.'ich  of  most  people.  But  here,  all 
the  enchanting  pleasures  of  mountain  life  can  be 
enjoyed  with  the  same  ease  and  comfort  and  at  nc 
greater  exertion  than  in  the  lowlands.  For  those 
who  are  affected  by  the  heat  and  dust  of  the  valley 
it  is  an  ideal  retreat,  where  complete  exemption 
is  to  be  had  from  all  complaints  of  the  respiratory 
organs,  especially  asthma  and  hay  fever.  The 
healthy  and  robust  also  find  a  variety  of  scenery 


114 

and  exercise  which  made  life  glow  with  new 
vigor,  attaining  in  a  large  degree  all  needed  rest 
and  recuperation. 

At  Mount  Lowe  Springs  the  Alpine  Tavern 
affords  excellent  accommodations  at  an  elevation 
of  5,000  feet  above  the  sea,  in  the  giant  pines 
which  crown  the  summit  of  the  first  range,  in 
which,  also,  are  opportunities  for  cottage  and 
tent  life  in  a  region  in  which  are  found  the  purest 
water,  air  which  is  perfectly  adapted  to  delicate 
lungs,  and  innumerable  opportunities  for  the 
physical  and  intellectual  upbuilding  of  overtaxed 
minds  and  bodies.  Here  one  can  find  rest  and 
sleep  as  they  have  never  slept  before,  awaking 
refreshed  with  the  tonic  of  mountain  air  and 
sweet  repose. 

The  Summing  Up.     In   closing  the   history  of 
this  remarkable  enterprise, 

one  thought  overshadows  all  others  as  we  con- 
template the  author  and  his  work. 

It  is  the  thought  of  the  unsolved  mysteries  and 
sublimities  and  beauties  of  these  mountains — 
their  inaccessibility,  their  remoteness — had  it  not 
been  for  the  persevering  efforts  of  Prof.  Lowe. 
The  dark  curtain  that  had  hung  for  ages  over 
these  craggy  chasms,  these  phenomenal  canyons, 
these  magnificent  forests,  these  abyssmal  depths 
and  cloud  piercing  heights,  these  grottoes  and 
glens,  these  solitary  habitations  of  bird  and  beast 
would  still  be  drawn  down  but  for  his  enterprise 
and  genius — thus  shutting  out  a  thousand  de- 
lights to  the  multitudes  who  have  already  looked 
upon  them,  and  the  myriads  in  the  coming  cen- 
tury who  are  yet  to  rejoice  in  their  glories. 


"5 

The  Beauties  of  And  no  words  of  mine  can 
Mount  Lowe.  express  the  charms,  delights 
and  beauties  of  Mount  Lowe 
better  than  the  following  apt  and  eloquent  sum- 
mary by  Dr.  J.  H.  Barrows,  of  Chicago,  the  well- 
known  President  of  the  Parliament  of  Religions 
at  the  World's  Fair,  and  later,  until  his  lamented 
death,  the  honored  President  of  Oberlin  College, 
Ohio: 

"Thousands  of  trees  grow  out  of  its  sold  gran- 
ite slopes ;  soft  mountain  breezes  sing  luring 
songs  to  the  trees,  the  birds  reply  in  a  perfect 
ecstacy  of  liquid  melody,  the  cataracts  here  and 
there  dash  and  boom  in  accompaniment,  and  the 
rippling  streams  gossippingly  carry  the  joyous 
news  of  the  mountain  heights  and  solitudes  to 
the  sweet  mesas  and  plains  below. 

"Four  varieties  of  scenery  are  here  combined : 
The  beautiful  San  Gabriel  Valley  pastoral  scene ; 
the  sublime  ocean  and  pearl-like  island  views ; 
the  Alpine,  Swiss,  Norwegian  and  Himalayan 
effects,  the  circle  of  magnificent  peaks  from  San 
Antonio  to  San  Jacinto.  Here  we  have  Italy 
and  Switzerland,  both  together !  Snow  and 
orange  groves  !  Icicles  and  heliotrope !  Sleigh- 
riding  and  rose  gardens !  Toboganning  and 
humming  birds !  Skating  and  butterflies ! 
Snowy  mountains  and  pearly  faced  ocean,  hazy 
islands  and  Eden's  garden,  all  held  in  the  bottom 
of  God's  hand,  in  the  sight  of  one  man's  eyes 
at  one  and  the  same  moment !" 

*  *  *  * 


n6 

Other  Picturesque         It  was  from  Mount  Lowe 

Trips  on  the  Pacific     that  the  President  of  the 

Electric  Railway.  Pacific  Electric  Railway 

gained  his  first  insight  or 

"oversight"  of  the  vast  possibilities  of  the  region 
in  and  around  the  city  of  Los  Angeles.  When  it 
was  suggested  to  him  that  the  time  was  not  far 
distant  when  the  whole  of  this  region,  from  the 
mountains  to  the  sea,  would  be  threaded  over 
with  electric  railways,  he  was  inclined  to  regard 
the  suggestion  as  chimerical.  Time  has  made 
his  the  hand  to  perform  the  improbable.  No- 
where in  the  civilized  world  is  such  a  suburban 
and  interurban  system  of  electric  railways  to  be 
found  as  radiates  from  the  city  of  Los  Angeles 
to  the  cities,  towns,  seaside  and  mountain  resorts 
of  this  portion  of  Southern  California.  Visitors 
to  the  Mount  Lowe  Railway  should  request  the 
conductors  to  point  out  from  the  summit  of  Echo 
Mountain  the  location  of  the  following  places. 

Long  One  of  the  most  interesting  trips  out  of 
Beach.  Los  Angeles  is  over  the  Pacific  Electric 
Railway  to  Long  Beach.  This  enter- 
prising city  is  located  twenty-one  miles  southeast 
of  Los  Angeles  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  Its  location  is  such  that  the  natural  ad- 
vantages make  it  the  finest  seaside  resort  in  Cali- 
fornia. Taking  the  cars  at  the  corner  of  Sixth 
and  Main  Streets,  the  city  of  Los  Angeles  is  soon 
behind  us  and  we  are  "spinning"  along  at  sixty 
miles  an  hour  over  the  smoothest  piece  of  broad 
gauge  track  ever  built,  in  cars  that  are  large  and 
commodious. 

Many  points  of  interest  are  passed  en  route 


n8 

—the  extensive  fields  of  the  Co-operative  Colony, 
vegetable  ranches  with  their  picturesque  Mon- 
golian workmen ;  through  the  prosperous  town  of 
Compton,  which  is  situated  in  the  centre  of  a 
fertile  district,  where  sugar  beets,  garden  truck, 
alfalfa  and  other  products  of  the  soil  are  raised; 
thence  by  the  old  Dominguez  Ranch,  famous  for 
the  old  Spanish  bull  fights  held  there,  also  the 
old  chapel  where  every  Catholic  bishop  in  this 
State  has  held  Divine  services.  The  surrounding 
Mesa  was  the  field  of  one  of  the  fights  of  the 
Mexican  War. 

The  track  is  so  straight  that  the  poles,  rails 
and  wires  converge  and  the  vanishing  point  is 
seen.  The  miles  are  slipping  by  at  a  rapid  rate. 
Over  bridges,  through  fields,  by  shady  nooks  and 
deep  pools  we  go.  Rich  fields  of  alfalfa,  with 
their  valuable  herds  of  cattle  grazing  in  the  fore- 
ground, while  in  the  distance  San  Antonio  rear- 
ing its  hoary  head  to  the  skies,  the  sentinel  of 
the  tropical  San  Gabriel  Valley,  makes  a  picture 
long  to  be  remembered. 

Passing  over  a  most  attractive  lagoon  and  up 
a  slight  grade — the  steepest  on  the  trip — we  are 
nearing  the  city  of  Long  Beach.  Houses  with 
their  beautiful  lawns  appear  on  every  hand. 
Situated  on  the  right  is  the  new  high  school  build- 
ing, an  example  of  the  Old  Mission  architecture. 
Turning  from  American  Avenue  on  to  Ocean 
Boulevard,  the  broad  Pacific  greets  our  unob- 
structed view.  Hundreds  are  enjoying  the  brac- 
ing air  and  delightful  surf.  The  large  building 
to  the  left  is  the  open  air  pavilion,  in  which  con- 
certs are  given  every  day  in  the  year,  dances 
being  held  tri-weekly.  From  here  the  broad 


Iiq 

pleasure  pier  runs  out  through  the  roaring  surf 
to  the  distance  of  eighteen  hundred  feet.  Fine 
fishing  is  had  from  this  point  of  vantage,  although 
by  going  out  in  boats  one  may  enjoy  the  plea- 
sures of  deep  sea  fishing.  The  world  renowned 
leaping  Tuna  and  June  fish  are  taken,  some  run- 
ning as  high  as  200  pounds. 

Among  the  attractions  of  the  beach  is  the  new 
$90,000  bath  house.  Finely  equipped  in  every 
respect,  it  is  the  best  appointed  and  largest  bath 
house  in  the  South.  The  warm  plunge  is  60x120 
feet,  graded  to  all  depths.  Here  one  may  enjoy 
still  water  bathing  and  acquire  the  art  of  swim- 
ming more  readily. 

Up  and  down  the  beach  for  miles  as  far  as  the 
eye  can  see  is  the  broad  expanse  of  hard,  white 
sand — fourteen  miles  long  at  low  tide — making 
one  of  the  finest  drives  imaginable,  while  off 
shore  the  white  winged  yachts  add  an  enchant- 
ment to  the  scene.  The  city  in  itself  is  very  at- 
tractive, the  parks,  public  and  private  buildings, 
broad,  well  laid  out  streets,  show  prosperity 
everywhere.  Roses,  calla  lilies,  violets,  carna- 
tions and  other  flowers  are  always  in  bloom.  The 
Chautauqua  Assembly  of  the  Pacific  Coast  is 
held  here  every  summer,  in  a  large  Tabernacle 
built  for  that  purpose,  and  interesting  lectures 
are  given  by  men  of  national  repute. 

4t   £   £   4 

Whittier.  The  great  Quaker  poet  has  here  his 
California  namesake,  a  beautiful 
town  nestling  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the  Puente 
Hills.  Here  Pio  Pico,  the  last  Mexican  Governor 
of  California,  built  a  home  for  his  young  bride, 
and  here,  forty  years  later,  three  Quakers  decided 


upon  this  as  the  location  for  a  town  they  had 
decided  to  establish.  That  was  fifteen  years  ago. 
Now  it  is  a  prosperous  town  of  fully  six  thou- 
sand inhabitants.  In  1900  it  had  but  one  thou- 
sand five  hundred  and  sixty  inhabitants ;  in  1902, 
three  thousand;  in  1903,  six  thousand.  In  the 
same  time  bank  deposits  in  the  city  have  increased 
from  $90,000  to  $275,000.  In  the  first  six  months 
of  1903  more  than  $90,000  have  been  invested 
in  buildings  ;  a  $12,000  church,  two  $12,000  school 
buildings,  a  $15,000  Odd  Fellows  Hall,  besides 
scores  of  beautiful  residences.  A  fire  depart- 
ment has  been  organized,  a  building  erected  and 
an  ample  equipment  secured.  The  city  has  been 
lighted  with  electricity  and  25,000  feet  of  gas 
mains  have  been  laid.  New  $25,000  high  school 
building,  a  city  hall,  and  a  dozen  miles  of  cement 
sidewalks  are  not  far  in  the  future. 

A  ride  out  to  Whittier,  therefore,  cannot  fail 
to  be  of  interest  to  traveler  and  stranger.  In  the 
Whittier  oil  fields  great  activity  -is  manifested, 
and  on  the  journey  one  may  see  some  of  the  finest 
of  orange  orchards,  walnut  groves  and  field  after 
field  of  monster  "small"  fruits,  such  as  black- 
berries, loganberries  and  the  like.  The  old  Pico 
Mansion  is  one  of  the  historic  landmarks  of  the 
State  that  all  should  see.  Here  also  is  located  the 
State  industrial  school  for  both  sexes.  Cars  run 
regularly  from  Depot,  Sixth  and  Main  Streets, 

Los  Angeles. 

*  *  *  * 

San         This  historical  landmark  was  founded 

Gabriel,     by    the    Franciscan    Fathers    Padres 

Benito    Cambon    and    Angel    Somero 

September  8,  1771,  for  the  purpose  of  converting 


the  Indians  in  that  territory  to  the  Christian  faith. 
The  Indians  readily  yielded  to  the  teachings  of 
the  mission  Fathers,  at  one  time  there  being  1,700 
Indians  under  their  supervision  at  this  Mission. 

The  old  Mision  structure  is  substantially  built 
of  brick,  covered  over  with  adobe  as  plaster. 
The  walls  are  from  four  to  six  feet  thick.  To-day 
one  can  see  it,  as  of  old,  standing  as  a  monument 
to  the  men  who  braved  death  and  sacrificed  their 
lives  to  bring  religion  to  a  heathen  people.  It  is 
one  of  the  best  preserved  of  all  the  old  Missions, 
and  contains  many  interesting  old  frescoes,  hand 
carved  images  and  paintings  which  were  brought 
to  this  country  from  Spain. 

The  old  bells,  of  which  originally  there  were 
six  (at  present  only  four),  still  chime  forth  the 
Angelus,  and  peal  forth  their  summons  to  mass. 
They  were  brought  from  Spain  and  traded  for  in 
hides,  beeswax  and  tallow. 

Among  the  numerous  attractions  is  the  old  Mis- 
sion Grape  Vine,  over  100  years  old;  the  cactus 
hedge  and  the  Campo  Santo  or  old  Spanish  buriai 
ground. 

The  Pacific  Electric  Cars  en  route  to  this  pictu- 
resque spot  pass  many  points  of  interest  to  the 
traveler.  Majestic  pepper  trees  line  the  way. 

After  leaving  the  junction  of  the  Pasadena 
Short  Line  the  Raymond  Hotel  stands  out  in  bold 
relief  against  Mount  Lowe,  many  miles  distant. 
The  cars  then  pass  in  front  of  the  famous  San 
Gabriel  Winery,  one  of  the  largest  in  the  world. 
Visitors  are  allowed  to  sample  freely  of  the  rare 
old  vintages. 

Thence  the  cars  wend  their  way  through  the 
main  street  of  the  town  of  Alhambra,  which  is 


123 


noted  for  its  fine  villas  and  fruit  products  of  all 
kinds.  Beautiful  villas  greet  the  eye  on  every 
hand,  and  the  beauty  of  the  flowers  is  everywhere ; 
— thence  to  San  Gabriel,  the  home  of  the  oldest 
inhabitants  of  the  San  Gabriel  Valley. 


Monrovia  and  About  sixteen  years  ago  an  en- 
Baldwin's  terprising  citizen  of  Los  Ange- 
Ranch.  les,  Mr.  W.  N.  Monroe,  realizing 
the  beauties  and  natural  advantages  of  the  foot- 
hill country,  developed  water  where  the  town  of 
Monrovia  now  stands,  and  laid  the  foundations  of 
the  enterprising  city  of  that  name.  It  stands  to- 
day a  marvel  of  beauty;  verdure  surrounds  you 
on  every  hand.  The  agricultural  possibilities  that 
have  laid  dormant  through  the  ages  have  been 
brought  to  a  reality,  and  this  section  is  now  con- 
sidered one  of  the  richest  sections  of  Southern 
California. 

The  new  double-track  broad-gauge  electric  line 
from  Los  Angeles  to  Monrovia,  eighteen  miles 
long,  passes  through  the  famous  San  Gabriel  Val- 
ley, with  the  peaks  of  the  Sierra  Madre  range, 
Mount  Lowe  6,100;  Wilson's  Peak,  6,700  feet, 
and  San  Antonio  10,000  feet,  standing  in  bold  re- 
lief against  the  blue. 

Starting  from  Los  Angeles  we  go  over  the  new 
Pasadena  Short  Line  to  Monrovia  Junction,  where 
we  turn  to  the  east,  the  Short  Line  continuing  in 
a  northerly  direction  to  Pasadena.  A  grand  view 
of  the  Raymond  Hotel,  with  its  dark  background 
of  mountains,  is  to  be  had  as  we  turn  east  onto 
the  "Orange  Grove  Route."  This'  is  through 
orange  groves  all  the  way,  one  may  say,  for  we 


are  riding  through  all  kinds  of  fruit  groves  and  or- 
chards until  Monrovia  is  reached.  Here  and  there 
we  see  stretches  of  pasture,  dotted  with  live  oak 
trees,  with  herds  of  cattle  grazing  peacefully  un- 
der their  scraggly  but  picturesque  branches. 
Country  roads  guarded  by  tall  eucalyptus  and 
graceful  pepper  trees,  wineries  and  vineyards  add 
to  the  scene.  Passing  through  the  L.  J.  Rose  and 
Chapman  ranches  we  now  enter  the  famous  ranch 
of  the  West,  BALDWIN'S  RANCH. 

Arcadia  is  the  station  we  stop  at  for  Baldwin's 
ranch.  Tallyhos  meet  the  cars,  and  the  nominal 
price  of  50  cents  is  charged  for  the  drive  through 
the  ranch.  On  this  drive  all  points  of  interest  are 
visited — the  house,  winery,  race  track  and  stables. 

Twenty-five  years  ago,  Mr.  E.  J.  Baldwin,  bet- 
ter known  as  "Lucky"  Baldwin,  took  up  land  and 
secured  ownership  to  the  vast  acreage,  now  com- 
prising 54,000  acres.  It  stands,  actually  a  princi- 
pality in  itself,  the  finest  ranch  in  the  West.  Time 
and  money  have  not  been  spared  to  beautify  the 
grounds  and  orchards.  The  Ranch  House  is 
situated  in  the  midst  of  an  immense  orange  grove, 
surrounded  with  artificial  lakes  and  pools,  majes- 
tic palms  and  drooping  boughs  of  the  weeping 
willows.  Roses  are  in  profusion ;  giant  cacti  and 
stately  pines  show  a  contrast  of  production.  The 
scene  challenges  description.  Nestling  under  this 
canopy  of  beauty  is  the  old  Log  Cabin,  a  relic 
of  the  early  days,  and  the  first  house  occupied  by 
Mr.  Baldwin  when  the  surrounding  country  was 
claimed  by  the  greatest  land  owner  of  all,  the 
Desert. 

At  the  stables  are  to  be  seen  the  best  thorough- 
bred horses  in  the  West,  all  with  records  for  their 


126 

fleetness.  The  Emperor  of  Norfolk,  a  most  know- 
ing animal,  won  the  Derby  of  '89,  winning  in  one 
race  $44,000.  This  horse  won  in  two  years  more 
than  any  other  horse  living,  winning  over  $200,000 
for  his  owner. 

Cars  leave  Sixth  and  Main  streets  every  half 
hour. 


For  literature,  descriptive  of 
....  the  trips,  write  .... 

General  Passenger  Department 
PACIFIC  ELECTRIC  RAILWAY 

LOS  ANGELES,  CAL- 


A  DEMAND  "SATISFIED! 


$1  J!  A  DAY  FOR  $1.S 


ORANGE  GROVE  ROUTE 


TO 

Ostrich  Farm  ^  ^ 
San  Gabriel  Mission 
Baldwin's  Ranch  a* 


PARLOR 

CAR 
"POPPY 


LEAVE 
Los  Angeles,  6th  and  Main,     9.30  A.  M. 

RETURN 
Arriving  in  Los  Angeles,        1.55  P.  M. 

Stopping  at  all  points  via 

PACIFIC  ELECTRIC  RAILWAY 

LOS    ANGELES,    CAL. 

WRITE     FOR     PARTICULARS. 


LIT  VIUTHERN  REGION 

ML. . 


Universit; 

Southe: 

Libra] 


